Cardona, Spain

Cardona is a town in the Spanish region of Catalonia, in the province of Barcelona; about 90 km (56 mi) northwest of the city of Barcelona, on a hill almost surrounded by the river Cardener, a branch of the Llobregat. To the east of the town, the river has been diverted through a tunnel has been dug through a spur, leaving a loop of dry river bed near the saltmine.

Rock salt mine in Cardona
Cardona
Municipality
Cardona from the air
Cardona from the air
Coat of arms of Cardona
Coat of arms
Cardona is located in Catalonia
Cardona
Cardona
Location in Catalonia
Cardona is located in Spain
Cardona
Cardona
Cardona (Spain)
Coordinates: 41°54′49″N 1°40′50″E
CountrySpain
Community Catalonia
ProvinceBarcelona
ComarcaBages
Government
 • MayorFerran Estruch Torrents (2015)[1]
Area
[2]
 • Total66.7 km2 (25.8 sq mi)
Elevation
506 m (1,660 ft)
Population
 (2018)[3]
 • Total4,652
 • Density70/km2 (180/sq mi)
Websitewww.cardona.cat

Near the town is an extensive deposit of rock salt. The salt forms a mountain mass (called Muntanya de Sal) covered by a thick bed of a reddish-brown clay, and apparently resting on a yellowish-grey sandstone. It is generally more or less translucent, and large masses of it are quite transparent. The hill has been worked like a mine since Roman times; pieces cut from it have been carved by artists in Cardona into images, crucifixes and many articles of an ornamental kind.[4]

Main sights
  • The Castle of Cardona, which is set high on a hill and contains a Parador hotel.
  • The 11th-century Romanesque Church of St. Vincenç.
  • The Church of Sant Miquel, built in the 11th century and rebuilt in the 14th century in Gothic style. It houses a precious polyptych by Pere Vall, depicting St. Anne, the Virgin and St. Amador, and a 15th-century baptismal font.


Panoramic view of the village, from near the castle

Local festivals
  • Caramelles: The Sunday of Passover
  • Mercat de la ganga: The first Sunday of February
  • Fira de Pentecostés: The first Sunday of June
  • Fira de la Llenega: The last Sunday of October
  • Festa Major: The second last weekend in September
  • Aplec de Cardona:[5] 18 September

Notable people

Notes

The movie Chimes at Midnight, by Orson Welles, was filmed at the castle in Cardona.

Twin towns

Bibliography
  • This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Cardona". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 324.
  • Pedrosa, Andreu (2001). The Castle of Cardona. Sant Vincenç de Castellet: Farell. ISBN 84-930418-8-2
  • Panareda Clopés, Josep Maria; Rios Calvet, Jaume; Rabella Vives, Josep Maria (1989). Guia de Catalunya, Barcelona: Caixa de Catalunya. ISBN 84-87135-01-3 (Spanish). ISBN 84-87135-02-1 (Catalan).

References
  1. "Ajuntament de Cardona". Generalitat of Catalonia. Retrieved 2015-11-13.
  2. "El municipi en xifres: Cardona". Statistical Institute of Catalonia. Retrieved 2015-11-23.
  3. Municipal Register of Spain 2018. National Statistics Institute.
  4. Chisholm 1911.
  5. "VIUREM LLIURES O MORTREM". Associació Cultural 18 de setempbre. Archived from the original on February 5, 2007. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  6. General Consul of Uruguay in Barcelona (4 February 2010). "Hermanamiento Cardona Catalana y Uruguaya". Archived from the original on 5 November 2014. Retrieved 7 May 2011.

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