Montserrat Mountain

The monastery itself houses its main treasure - the miraculous image of the Black Virgin of Montserrat (La Moreneta). This wooden statue from the Romanesque era has turned this place into a center of mass pilgrimage since ancient times.

From the mountain, you will enjoy a fairytale mesmerizing mountain landscape with unusual rock formations resembling giant sharp tongues of flame soaring into the sky, or a giant upside-down saw. Montserrat's name means 'serrated mountain'. According to legend, 'angels cut these peaks with a golden saw'. We will see giant stone sculptures created by nature itself 10 million years ago, which people have named Monk, Guardian, Skull, Mummy, Camel, Elephant...

However, the main purpose of our trip will still be the visit to the Santa Maria de Montserrat monastery. You will learn about its history and legends, as it has witnessed many historical events since its founding at the end of the 9th century, related to the miraculous discovery of the image of the Virgin Mary. Since its foundation, the monastery has become one of the important religious and cultural centers in the Catholic world. It houses a rich library of around 300,000 volumes, the oldest printing press on the Iberian Peninsula, and the famous boys' choir school 'Escolania', one of the oldest in the world.

Throughout its millennia of existence, the monastery architecture has undergone various styles, traces of which we will see. The 19th century brought many tragic events to the monastery's history. Arsons and looting by Napoleon's troops and the secularization of church lands led to its complete devastation and destruction. In the second half of the century, the monastery underwent a reconstruction lasting about a hundred years. The best Catalan artists, sculptors, and jewelers worked on creating magnificent interiors that amaze visitors.

However, our excursion would not be complete without a visit to the main sanctuary of the monastery - the image of the Black Virgin of Montserrat, proclaimed the holy patroness of Catalonia in 1881. By touching the right hand of the miraculous statue, you can pray for healing from illness, a happy marriage, or the birth of a child. It has long been customary to bring one's bride to the monastery before the wedding. As the saying goes: 'He will not be happily married if he does not bring his bride to Montserrat'.