Monastery of Sant Jeroni de la Murtra

Initially, it had a precarious development and was on the verge of disappearing. In 1431, an attempt was made to unite it with Sant Jeroni de la Vall d'Hebron, but this was never achieved. At the end of the 15th century, it enjoyed an improvement and gained the protection of royalty (John II, the Catholic Monarchs and Charles I) who contributed to its construction. John II, who visited the Murtra on several occasions, took part in the construction of the refectory, which is still preserved today. The monarchs also took part in the construction of the cloister, built from 1465 onwards. The sculptural decoration it contains is important, from the keystones to the corbels, with representations of religious scenes and different characters, including the Catholic Monarchs and Christopher Columbus.

The place was burnt down and suffered serious destruction, the most notable loss being the church and one of the cloister galleries. However, it must be said that the remains preserved are still very important. The monastery buildings passed into private hands, essentially to two families who, from the end of the 19th century until the Civil War, adapted it as a summer house for wealthy families. In 1946 the part of the monastery was acquired by Francesca Güell. Today it is home to the Catalunya-Amèrica Foundation, which researches and disseminates the relations between Catalonia and the New World, and in 2014 the Murtra was declared a Cultural Asset of National Interest. The Associació d'Amics de Sant Jeroni de la Murtra (Association of Friends of Sant Jeroni de la Murtra) looks after the cultural dissemination of the ancient monastery.