National Palace, Barcelona Palau Nacional

The world-ranking Department of Romanesque Art (11th-13th C.) is particularly impressive. Here can be seen magnificent frescoes from many churches in the Pyrenean region of Catalonia. For this purpose, vaulted ceilings and apses from the original sites have been exactly reproduced with the wall-paintings incorporated in them, while faithful copies of the originals have replaced them in the churches from which they were taken. Photographs, ground-plans and drawings of the churches concerned accompany the exhibits. Particularly noteworthy is the room with apses from Burgal and Santa Maria d'Aneu facing each other. Also worth seeing are the frescoes from Tahull, with the nave of the local church of Santa Maria completely reproduced. Note also the liturgical articles, altar-pieces, pillar capitals and sculptured figures.

The Department of Gothic Art (14th and 15th C.) is partly arranged systematically rather than chronologically. Its collections are not limited to Catalonia, but also include works from other regions of Spain. On display are wooden and stone sculptures, altar-pieces (including a massive 14th C. Altar to Or Lady by members of the Serra family of artists who worked in Barcelona between 1357 and 1405.

This relatively small department contains items from other areas of Spain as well as from the Spanish Netherlands.