Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona.

Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona.

To build the Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona. church, porters called “bastaixos” had to load and unload the building stones. Fishermen and peasants used their hands and backs and transport the stones from the nearby mountain of Montjuic. The first cornerstone of the present temple was laid on 25 March, 1329.

The last circular keystone, the closest one to the main door, was put in place on 3 November, 1383. This is a short amount of time considering how slowly these kinds of buildings were constructed during the Middle-Age. The church was consecrated by Pere Planella, the bishop of Barcelona, on 15 August, 1384.

To manage the construction and maintenance, the fathers of Catholic families on the “La Rivera” neighborhood elected 25 members of the “Vinticinquena” group. This group nominated a board of eight members, the “Junta d’Obra”, which dealt with the daily operations. Once every year, the board provided the key of the church to the bishop of Barcelona, so he could use the church for religious services. This traditional election of the board has been preserved until the Spanish Civil War in 1936.

Over the years, constant social and political turmoil caused destruction to the basilica. But nothing can be compared with the destruction on the 19th of July in 1936. Santa Maria del Mar was set on fire, which burned for eleven days straight. The magnificent baroque altar, all the images, and historical archives were destroyed. Only the walls, columns, and a few of the stained glass windows on the upper level were spared. The fire didn’t reach to that height.

The Gothic church located next to the sea.

When the Civil War ended in 1939, a team of residents from the “La Rivera” neighborhood nominated themselves as the new board. My father, Xavier Sauret, was one of the members. They carried out the restoration over 60 years. They collected money to clean, re-build stained glass, and install a new electricity system, emphasizing its elegant and sober Gothic style.

At the end of the difficult restoration effort, the Bishop of Barcelona forced the members to resign from the board. I remember my father being very angry after the meeting. To dampen the anger, the Bishop gave the board the opportunity to build a stained glass window with their names on it, as members of the last board of Santa Maria del Mar.