The old port town of Tarragona, chief town of its province and the see of an archbishop, is picturesquely situated, some 100km/60mi southwest of Barcelona, on a hill rising 160m/525ft above the Mediterranean. On the highest point of the hill, which was the site of an ancient fortified settlement, is the Cathedral.
History
The origins of the ancient stronghold known to the Romans as Tarraco go back to the third millennium B.C. The first town walls were built by an Iberian tribe, the Cessetani. After its capture by the Romans in the Second Punic War (218 B.C.) the town became the main Roman base in Spain and from the time of Augustus capital of the whole province of Hispania. The remains of many splendid buildings still testify to the wealth of ancient Tarraco. In later centuries the town was several times destroyed - in 475 by the Visigoths, in 713 by the Moors, who held it until the beginning of the ninth century, and in 1811 by the French.
The well-preserved Cyclopean Walls date back to as early as 218 B.C. The walls find their origin in the Roman, Augustan and Moorish historical periods.
The town's principal traffic artery is the broad tree-lined Rambla Nova. At its south end is the Balcón del Mediterráneo, from which there are extensive views of the sea and the coast.
From the Balcón del Mediterráneo, promenades affording fine views run along high above the sea to the beaches to the east, from Rabasada and Sabinosa to the Punta de la Mora. To the southeast are Playa de la Pineda and Salou where there is good bathing.
Some distance farther west from the Roman Forum, beyond the Plaza de Toros (Bullring) on the banks of the Río Francoli, are the remains of an early Christian necropolis (third-sixth C.), discovered during the building of a tobacco factory. The most important finds from the site (lead and marble sarcophagi, urns, mosaics, jewellery and ornaments, etc.) are displayed in the Museo Paleocristiano (Catalan Museu Paleocristià).
To the west of the Rambla Nova is the Plaza Corsini, near which are remains of the Roman Forum and many Roman houses, dating from the time when Tarraco was capital of the province.
From the Balcón steps (to right) lead down to the railroad station and the harbor, which is sheltered by the Dique de Levante, a breakwater 1,700m (over a mile) long, with a lighthouse.
East of the Town Hall, in Calle Ferrers, is the 15th Century mansion of the Castellarnau family, fully furnished, which is now a museum (ceramics, glassware, metalwork, coins and items illustrating the history of the town).
Address: Casa Museo Castellarnau, Carrer dels Cavallers 14, E-43003 Tarragona, Spain
Hours:
June 1 to September 30: 9am-8pm; Sun:9am-3pm; Closed: Mon
October 1 to May 31: 10am-1:30pm, 4pm-6:30pm; Sun:10am-2pm, 4pm-6:30pm; Closed: Mon, Mon
Northeast of the Archeological Museum, in Calle Santa Ana, is the Museum of Modern Art. To the south of this extends the former Jewish quarter of Tarragona.
Address: Museum of Modern Art, Calle Santa Ana 8, E-43003 Tarragona, Spain
To the north of the Cathedral, in the Plaza del Palacio, stands the early 19th century Archbishop's Palace. Adjoining the palace is an old defensive tower, the Torre del Arzobispo, standing on the highest point in the town, on the site of the Roman castrum (fine views). In the courtyard of the palace are a number of gravestones.
The Paseo Arqueológico, which is pleasantly shaded by cypresses and affords extensive views from each end, passes a bronze statue of Augustus gifted by Italy in 1934, the Torre del Arzobispo and a seminary for the training of priests at the east end of the hill.
Half way along the Rambla Vella a turning on the right leads to the Plaza de la Fuente, on the site of the Roman Circus, of which there are remains of foundations and vaulting in the adjoining buildings. On the north side of the square is the early 19th century Casa Consistorial (Town Hall).
Adjoining the modern Archeology Museum building rises the massive Roman Praetorium, also known as the Torreón de Pilatos because Pilate is supposed to have been born in it. It is not in fact a palace but one of the towers bounding the Forum, which lay to its rear. The tower now houses a museum on the history of the town.
Address: Pretorio Romano, Placa del Rei / Rambla Vella, Tarragona , Spain
Hours:
June 1 to September 30: 9am-8pm; Closed: Mon
October 1 to May 31: 10am-1:30pm, 4pm-6:30pm; Closed: Mon, Mon
To the east of the Balcón del Mediterráneo in Tarragona is the Paseo de les Palmeres, a beautiful avenue laid out in terraces. From its near end the Rambla Nova, a wide boulevard with gardens along the middle, goes off on the left, with the handsome Baroque church of San Agustín and the church of San Francisco.
Below the Balcón (on the left) extends the Parque del Milagro (Catalan Parc del Milagre), in which is the Roman amphitheater (Spanish Anfiteatro romano, Catalan Amfiteatre romà), which was excavated in 1952. The amphitheater, which dates from the time of Augustus, had seating for 12,000 spectators. It was the scene of the martyrdom in A.D. 259 of Bishop Fructuosus and two deacons named Augurius and Eulogius.
Address: Roman Amphitheatre in Tarragona, Parc del Miracle, E-43003 Tarragona, Spain
Hours:
April 1 to May 31: 10am-1:30pm, 3:30pm-6:30pm; Closed: Mon
June 1 to September 30: 9am-8pm; Closed: Mon, Mon
October 1 to March 31: 10am-1:30pm, 3:30pm-6:30pm; Closed: Mon, Mon, Mon
Beyond Torrembara the N 340 passes the Arco de Barà, a 12m/40ft high triumphal arch of the A.D. second century dedicated to Lucius Licinius Sura, a wealthy friend of the Emperor Trajan.
The monastery of Santa María de Poblet, built between the 12th and 14th C, is a large complex of buildings surrounded by walls. It was the burial site of the Aragonese kings.
From Valls a secondary road leads 18km/11mi north to the Cistercian monastery of Santes Creus, founded in 1157. The Romanesque church (1254) with its fortress like facade and octagonal tower over the crossing, contains the handsome tombs of a number of kings of Aragon, including Pedro III and Jaime II and his wife Blanche of Anjou.
The Santes Creus Monastery and cloister.
Interior
The monastery has two cloisters - the Gothic New Cloister, with finely carved capitals and a simple fountain-house, and the Romanesque Old Cloister, entered from the northwest corner of the New Cloister. Other features of interest are the Chapterhouse, with the gravestones of canons set into the floor, the Dormitory and the Palacio Real, in which the kings of Aragon spent Easter week.
Address: Monasterio de Santes Creus, Plaza Sant Bernat, Tarragona , Spain
Hours:
January 16 to March 15: 10am-1:30pm, 3pm-6pm
March 16 to September 15: 10:30am-1:30pm, 3pm-7pm
September 16 to January 15: 10am-1:30pm, 3pm-5:30pm
Always closed on: New Year's Day (January 1), Christmas - Christian (December 25)
2km/1.25mi farther on past the Torre de los Escipiones, a road branches off on the left to the Roman quarry (cantera) of El Medol, in the center of which is a monolithic block indicating the original height of the rock.
N 340 leaves the coast at Arco de Barà and runs inland to El Vendrell (alt. 50m/165ft). This little town, attractively situated on a hill was the birthplace of the cellist Pau (Pablo) Casals (1876-1973). There is a Prehistoric Museum in the town.
Address: El Vendrell Tourist Office, Dr. Robert 33, E-43700 El Vendrell, Spain
6km/4mi northwest of Tarragona on the Constantí road is the late Roman mausoleum of Centcelles, probably built in the A.D. fourth century for Constans, son of the Emperor Constantine. It has a well preserved Christian mosaic in the dome depicting Biblical scenes like "Daniel in the Lions' Den".
Marques de Marianco occupied 14ha which was designed in romantic style. There is an artificial hill with a pavilion on top and a cave underneath. There is a well-grown collection of trees, including many rare species of palm and yucca. It also has aviaries and animal houses throughout the park which are the remain of a private zoo.
Hours:
10am-6pm; Closed: Sun, Sat
Always closed on: New Year's Day (January 1), Feast of St John the Baptist - Christian (June 24), Feast of St James - Christian (July 25), National Day - Spain (October 12), Christmas Eve - Christian (December 24), New Year's Eve (December 31), Christmas - Christian (December 25), Easter Monday - Christian, Good Friday - Christian, Easter - Christian
Continuing along a pleasant road flanked by lemon-groves from the Cantera del Medol, we come to Tamarit, which preserves part of its 14th century circuit of walls. The Castillo, directly on the sea, is now a museum.
From Tarragona the coast road runs east. 6km/4mi from Tarragona, to the left of the road, is the Torre de los Escipiones, a square structure 8m/25ft high dating from the first century A.D. There is no basis for the association with the Roman generals of that name, Gnaeus and Publius Cornelius Scipio, who were killed in the third century B.C. There are two statues of the Phrygian divinity Attis.
The N 240 continues from the Acueducto de las Ferreras up the valley of the Río Francolí to Valls (alt. 215m/705ft), with a much revered image of Nuestra Señora de la Candela in the parish church, which is partly decorated with azulejos.
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Cyclopean Walls
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Roman Remains, Tarragona
Cathedral, Tarragona
Monasterio de Poblet, Tarragona
Roman Remains, Tarragona
Cathedral, Tarragona
Cyclopean Walls, Tarragona
Roman Remains, Tarragona
