Tourist Attractions in Vich

In the ambulatory is a Gothic altar (by Pere Oller; 15th C.) of painted and richly gilded alabaster, originally the high altar, which miraculously survived the destruction of the church during the Civil War. The central figures are the Virgin and Child with St Peter (recognizable by his papal crown and keys); on either side are twelve scenes from the life of Christ and the life of St Peter; and on the predella are Apostles and Evangelists, with Christ as the Man of Sorrows in the middle.

From the chapterhouse visitors enter the Gothic part (14th C.) of the cloister, which is on three levels (Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance). In the center is the bombastic monument of Jaume Balmes, who was for a time an adviser to Pope Pius IX (of whom there is a portrait bust in the cloister). This part of the cloister is notable for its lightness and transparency. The arcading has rich tracery.

The cloister can be seen only in the company of the sacristan.

The chapterhouse, crypt and cloister can be seen only in the company of the sacristan. The Gothic chapterhouse has a painted keystone with the figure of St Peter.

The crypt, which dates from the early 11th century, incorporates stone from Visigothic and Arab buildings. Notable features are the fine capitals and the alabaster windows in the apse.

The Cathedral in Vich is entered by a small doorway on the north side. The nave with its flanking aisles is in a massive, heavy Baroque style. The walls above the side chapels, the inner surface of the west front and the apse are covered with monumental wall paintings (1926-30) by José (Catalan Josep) María Sert, which reflect something of the spirit of their Baroque models. In a chapel closed by a grille in the north aisle, near the entrance, is a silver sarcophagus (18th century) containing the remains of a local saint, San Bernardo Calvo (Catalan Bernat Calbó).

A yearly flower market graces the town of Vich.

The focal point of the old town of Vic (now surrounded by a circuit of streets on the line of the old walls) is the Plaza Mayor, in the northern part of the town.

Immediately adjoining the Baroque facade of the church of Nuestra Señora de la Piedad, in the eastern part of the old town, are the remains (considerably restored) of a Roman temple of the A.D. second century. To the right are the remains of medieval walls and vaulting.

From the Plaza Mayor's southeast corner a narrow street leads to the Casa Consistorial, originally built in Gothic style and enlarged in the 16th and 17th centuries. It contains a portrait gallery of Vic's most distinguished sons and part of the municipal archives.