The south-west cemetery

The Montjuïc Cemetery, also known as the south-west cemetery, was officially opened on 17 March 1883 by the then mayor of Barcelona Francesc de Paula Rius i Taulet. One of its innovations was the space it reserved for burying non-Catholics, Protestants and Jews, for example. The first person buried there, as stated on his tombstone, was José Fonrodona Riva, a Catalan who had gone to South America to make his fortune and had been the mayor of Matanzas in Cuba.

The cemetery resembles an English garden, with its winding paths, beautiful perspectives and well-placed tombs. It has abundant vegetation and cypresses are its hallmark tree. Some 6,000 underground vaults and 70 family vaults had been built there by 1890. Today there are 152,327 tombs.

Funeral Modernisme

Given the era it was designed and built in, the cemetery represented the expression of Modernisme within funeral art. It is seen as a benchmark today and a must-visit for anyone who studies or enjoys Modernista architecture. You can find beautiful sculptures, engravings, stonework and ironwork on the tombstones, family vaults and architectural groups there. The cemetery is open throughout the year, every day, from 8 am to 6 pm.