Olot’s material heritage is the result of its long history, in which religious art and the construction of churches played a central role. This cultural heritage can by explored by way of the three buildings that make up the city’s so-called “holy triangle”: the Santa Maria del Tura sanctuary, the Parish Church of Sant Esteve and the Museum of the Saints.
Santa Maria del Tura (named after Olot’s patron saint) is a Baroque church with a long history. The first document that mentions the church dates from 872, in which it is already described as being "old". After having been rebuilt several times, the building as it stands today was completed in the 16th century, in a style that fuses Neoclassicist and Baroque elements. Although the church was ravaged by fire in the Spanish Civil War and was about to be torn down, it ended up being restored and was once again opened for worship.
The parish church of Sant Esteve is another of Olot’s architectural gems, built in the Neoclassical style. Although not many of its 16th-century features remain on the outside of the church, the inside conceals treasures such as an El Greco painting, an ancient Hebrew headstone and one of the most spectacular altarpieces of the Catalan Baroque. This building was declared a Cultural Asset of National Interest in 1993.
The Museum of Saints, located in the building of El Arte Cristiano (Christian Art), is a space dedicated to religious imagery. Apart from demonstrating the process of crafting religious images (mainly in the forms of statues and figurines), the museum also houses an important collection of figures of saints, Holy Week “pasos” (processional statues), nativity scene figurines and emblematic pieces that have emerged from its from its workshops, both in the present and past.
Visiting Olot’s religious buildings is a unique opportunity to discover the art and history of the city, and its relationship with the Catholic religion. With the charm of these historic buildings and the treasures that they conceal, this cultural experience is sure to leave a long-lasting impression.
Visit the Trincheria House Museum, one of the most important ancestral homes in Olot, located at no. 29, Carrer de Sant Esteve. The house-museum is quintessential of how a well-off family lived in the first half of the 18th-century.
The Cloister of the former Carmen Convent in Olot, located at no. 3, Carrer Padre Antoni Soler, is a formation of impressive Renaissance galleries that is of the most unique and symmetrical in the whole of Catalonia.
The Malagrida neighbourhood (L’Eixample Malagrida in Catalan) is the most emblematic urban treasure in Olot. Built between 1916 and 1925, it is an example of the Noucentista “garden city” movement that took hold in the early 20th century.
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