Solsona

The existence of a pre-Romanesque church from the year 977 is known. From this period the three apses, the bell tower, some elements of the cloister, and the cellar and the cantonal dining room are preserved, today adapted for other uses. The current cathedral is in Gothic style, begun at the end of the 13th century and finished in the 17th century. To the left of the transept is the chapel of La Mercè, with a Baroque altarpiece probably the work of Carles Morató. On the right is the venerated image of the Virgin of the Cloister, from the 12th century, catalogued as one of the most important sculptures of Catalan Romanesque. The vestibule was expanded at the beginning of the 20th century by August Font. The façade of the vestibule follows a Noucentista line with some Modernist elements.

City gates and walls: As the town grew, the first walls were built in the 11th century, replaced in the 14th century (specifically, around 1303) by others that were 2 m thick and 16 m high, of which there are still standing remains scattered in different places, as well as three towers in the Vall Calent area, where it can be seen that large windows and roofs have been opened, the result of an integration of the wall and towers as part of residential buildings, which was carried out mainly throughout the 20th century. To access the walled enclosure there were gates, which were closed at dusk with wooden doors and opened at dawn. Only three remain: the Pont gate, the Llobera gate and the Castell gate. The Portal del Pont, completed in 1805, became the main entrance to the city after the twelve-arched stone bridge was built at the end of the 18th century. In the 17th century, during the plague, the current Portal de Llobera was opened so that only Solsona natives could enter, as a protective measure. A chapel was built over the entrance in the 18th century, which still exists, and is dedicated to Santa Anna. And the Portal del Castell got its name thanks to the fact that the first castle in Solsona was next to the portal, today a nunnery and the Arrels I school. The lords solemnly made their first entrance through this portal, but before that they had to swear that they would keep their privileges and customs. The main entrance was through this access until the 18th century.

Built by Bishop Lasala in the 18th century. Its main facade, along with that of the Palau de la Virreina in Barcelona, is one of the most outstanding examples of Catalan neoclassicism. Inside the Episcopal Palace you can visit the Diocesan and Regional Museum, one of the first diocesan museums in Catalonia, where you can find rooms dedicated to prehistory, important collections of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque, as well as a room dedicated to salt sculptures from the Cardona mines.

The Plaça Major is the main square of the city, a porticoed square where the main streets of the old town are located: Carrer Castell, Carrer de Llobera and Carrer de Sant Miquel. It is the point where various events of the most celebrated festivals of Solsona are held: the Festa Major, the Carnival and the Corpus Christi, as well as several fairs during the year, and the Friday market. Of the buildings that make up the square, the building of ca l'Aguilar (at no. 5 of the square) can be highlighted, which has been the stately home of successive dynasties of merchants and nobles and where an exhibition hall has been set up.