Rambla de los Estudios
Since the 14th century the walls closed off this section of the Rambla at the upper end; in the 16th century, the street had as its backdrop the building of the General Study or University, which gave the current name to this part of the Rambla. Felipe V abolished the university of Barcelona and turned the building into a barracks. In 1843, it was demolished to open up the Gate of Isabel II in the walls.
The current alignment of the street section known as Rambla de los Estudios was not completed until the years 1848 and 1856 when the old fortifications were completely demolished, which at the beginning of the 19th century still stood on its left corner.
If we start our journey down the right side of the Rambla, we will find Calle del Bonsuccés, opened in the year 1442, leading to the Center for Contemporary Culture of Barcelona, located in the old Casa de la Caridad, also known as the House of Mercy. A little further down, we find the Poliorama Theater, installed in 1912 in the basement of the building of the Academy of Sciences and Arts, of progressive style, built in 1883. The theater has been remodeled by Bohigas, Martorell, and Mackay. Traditionally, the bird market is set up on the side closest to Portaferrissa Street, where the sun shines; some writers have called the Rambla de los Estudios Rambla de los Pájaros for this reason and also for the concentration of sparrows that build their nests on the branches of the trees closest to the cages that make up the market.
We continue down to the right and will find, after the street honoring the Painter Fortuny, the church of Belén, an old Jesuit church that burned down in the year 1671. In 1680, based on a project by Josep Juli, the current church was started, which is located on the corner of the Rambla and Calle del Carmen, where its main façade is. The side facade of the church faces the Rambla. Inside, we find a single spacious nave with chapels on its sides: it is the traditional Catalan Gothic style.
Before 1936, it was decorated with marquetry of colored marbles and Italian stuccoes polished by fire, a retable, and large lattices in the galleries, enriched with polychrome and gilded carved figures. The vaults were painted with grisailles. The fire of 1936 completely destroyed it. The structure of the temple was also affected, but it has been rebuilt following its original form. Currently, this church has an exhibition room.
Before reaching the church and on the left side of the Rambla, Calle de la Canuda leads us to Plaza de la Villa de Madrid, where we find a sunken garden where we can visit a Roman necropolis, unearthed by a bomb from the Civil War (1936).
On the left side of the Rambla, at the corner of Calle de la Portaferrissa, we find the Moja Palace, also known as the Palace of the Marquis of Comillas, a title granted to its last owner, Antonio López y López, creator of the Transatlantic Company, the Hispano Colonial Bank, and the General Company of Philippine Tobacco. When this building was constructed in 1702 by Pere de Cartellà, the walls of the Rambla were still standing, and this palace, which was attached, was one of the first buildings authorized to have windows opened. The Rambla facade was modified in 1934, and the ground floor portals were opened to expand the sidewalk. Since 1981, it has housed facilities of the Cultural Department of the Government of Catalonia, and on the upper floor, the room of Mossèn Cinto Verdaguer is preserved as it was when he worked as the marquis of Comillas' almoner, under whose patronage he wrote the great poem "L'Atlàntida."
