Casa Batllo in Barcelona is the most important tourist attraction in Spain. Its author is Antonio Gaudi, a famous Spanish architect. This is his only work that he created in the style of pure modernism. In 1962, Casa Batlló was declared an artistic monument of Barcelona, 7 years later it was given the status of national importance, and since 2005 it has been included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Up to a million people visit it every year. Casa Batlló, together with two other modernist buildings - Casa Leo Morera and Casa Amalia - due to their stylistic contrast, forms the famous Barcelona "Quarter of Discord" or "Apple of Discord".
The area of the house is 4300 square meters, height – 32 meters. It has 8 floors, an attic and a basement.
House Batllo is sometimes called "casa Batllo" or "Casa Batllo". Antonio Gaudi worked on it in 1904-1906. Initially, textile magnate Josep Batllo i Casanovas wanted to demolish his house and build a new one in its place, but the architect decided to completely reconstruct it and designed two new facades: the main one, facing the avenue Passeig de Gracia, and the second - inside the block.
The appearance of the house almost exactly reflects the legend of St. George, who killed a huge dragon with his sword. If you look closely, you will notice that its roof resembles Gaudi’s favorite mythological character, the chimney pipes are a sword blade decorated with a St. George’s cross, and the narrow original galleries are the bones of numerous victims of a terrible monster, which is why the Ballio house is also called the “House of Bones.”
The appearance resembles a skeleton, the balconies resemble skulls, and the columns resemble bones. The columns of the mezzanine are also decorated with skulls and bones.
No less impressive are the small balconies, similar to the top of a skull, with eye sockets instead of drawers. The final element of the exterior is the unusual roof. In addition to its direct purpose, it also performs an important aesthetic function. The main elements of this design are mushroom-shaped chimneys and the so-called "Asotea", a small open area used as an observation deck.
The effect is enhanced by mosaic “scales”. It is made from broken ceramic tiles and is used for wall cladding. Depending on the weather and light intensity, it looks like a rainbow of colors. The courtyard of the house is decorated in the same style. The only difference is the colors.
Another distinctive feature of Casa Batllo is that it has no straight lines. On all decorative elements of the facade they are replaced by cladding, wavy and arched coils. Every year on April 23, the facade of Casa Batllo is decorated with roses in honor of the day of St. George, who defeated the monster.
The interior of the house is also magnificent. Here's an example of what a staircase looks like:
Fireplace:
Lounge and sun-like chandeliers:
Attic:
Interior space:
Basement access:
House Batlló opening hours:
- Tuesday-Thursday - 09:00-18:30;
- Friday-Monday - 09:00-20:00.
There is an entrance fee to Casa Batllo.
Ticket prices:
- regular ticket for adults - 35 euros;
- ticket for adults with free admission - 43 euros;
- for adults with skip-the-line entry, viewing the private Room Batllo, the right to change the entry date and cancel the ticket - 45 euros;
- for teenagers 13-17 years old - 19 euros;
- with a student card - 29 euros;
- for people over 65 years old - 32 euros;
- Admission is free for children under 12 years old (accompanied by an adult).
These are the prices when purchasing a ticket on the website. At the checkout you will have to pay an additional 4 euros.
Casa Batllo address: Paseo de Gracia, 43.
To get to Casa Batllo, use:
- purple L2, green L3 or yellow L4 lines metro, stop Passeig de Gràcia;
- bus No. 22, 24, stop Pg. de Gràcia - Consell de Cent; No. 7, H10, V15, stop Pg. de Gràcia - Aragó.
To buy tickets and get more information, visit the official website of Casa Batllo: http://www.casabatllo.es.
For detailed information about tickets and transport in Barcelona, see the article Public transport in Barcelona.
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