Lost Jewish Sites in Barcelona: Discover the Hidden History
Barcelona's medieval Jewish community left behind a remarkable intellectual, cultural and architectural legacy. Yet today, much of that world is difficult to see. Synagogues have disappeared, the medieval cemetery has been transformed, and Hebrew inscriptions once marking Jewish graves have found their way into the walls of later buildings.
To discover the history of Jewish Barcelona, we must learn to read the city differently. Beyond the narrow streets of El Call, the former Jewish Quarter, traces of this history can be found on Montjuïc, in the city's historic buildings, and in archaeological discoveries that continue to illuminate the lives of medieval Barcelona's Jewish inhabitants.
Barcelona's best-documented lost Jewish sites include the medieval cemetery on Montjuïc, the Call Menor quarter, and the possible site of a medieval mikveh, helping us reconstruct the story of Jewish Barcelona.
Learn about what you can see in Jewish Barelona today here.
The Jewish cemetery of Montjuïc: the mountain of the Jews
From the hillside, the cemetery overlooked the walled city of Barcelona where generations of Jewish families had lived, worked, studied and prayed. An essential part of Jewish communal life, archaeological research has documented hundreds of graves, with evidence indicating that the cemetery was in use from at least the early Middle Ages until the end of the Jewish community's established life in Barcelona in 1391.
The name Montjuïc is generally understood to derive from the Catalan mont dels jueus, or “mountain of the Jews”, a reference to the medieval Jewish cemetery that once occupied part of the hillside overlooking Barcelona. The earliest known documentary reference to Montjuïc dates to 879, when the mountain was recorded under the Latin name Mons Judeiqus, commonly interpreted as “Jewish mountain”. The Jewish cemetery itself is explicitly documented in 1091, when a charter refers to land at Monte judaico adjoining “old Jewish graves” (veteres iudorum sepulturas).
The cemetery remained in use until the devastating attack on Barcelona's Jewish community in August 1391. In the aftermath, the cemetery was abandoned and its gravestones plundered, and being royal property of the King, permission was granted to reuse Hebrew-inscribed tombstones in buildings elsewhere in the city.
The missing mikveh: hidden beneath the streets?
Where did Barcelona’s medieval Jewish community go for ritual immersion? The location of its mikveh - the ritual bath used for purification - remains a fascinating question, and historical sources point to more than one possibility.
In 1160, Count Ramon Berenguer IV entered into an agreement with Abraham Bonastruc, a Jewish associate, for the construction of the Banys Nous, or New Baths. Built outside the old Roman walls, near the junction of Carrer de Banys Nous and Carrer de la Boqueria, this public bathhouse included a room intended for a Jewish use. The baths were demolished in the nineteenth century, and historical drawings and a model preserve something of their appearance.
There is another possible location closer to the heart of the Call. Historical documentation refers to baths known as the Banys Freds, on the street now called Carrer de l’Arc de Sant Ramon del Call, near the former Roman wall and the French Synagogue. These baths may have served as the Jewish community’s ritual bath, although their exact location has not been established archaeologically.
Even today, stories circulate about a possible hidden mikveh beneath buildings in the street of the new baths, in a furniture shop, a tea house. However, this remains unverified, and there is no confirmed archaeological identification of a mikveh.
The Call Menor: a lost Jewish neighbourhood
Barcelona had two medieval Jewish quarters: the Call Major and the Call Menor. The Call Menor was established in the thirteenth century as the Jewish population grew, and lay beyond the earlier Roman walls. Unlike the enclosed Call Major, the Call Menor had no gates of its own. Jewish and Christian residents lived alongside one another, and the surrounding streets held unexpected connections to the wider city.
The Volta del Remei preserves a glimpse of medieval Barcelona. The vault forms part of a house of medieval origin; beneath it, a blocked-up semicircular doorway and a thirteenth-century tower can still be seen.
Another street that preserves a curious connection to the past is Carrer de Lleona - the Lion Street. In the fourteenth century, a yard here may have housed lions belonging to the royal menagerie. The king’s lionkeeper was often Jewish, while the Jewish community (aljama) was obliged to pay for the animals’ food. Caring for the royal lions was a potentially dangerous occupation, and this detail offers a glimpse into the responsibilities and roles Jewish residents held within the royal city.
After 1391: The Conversos of the Call Menor
After the violence of 1391, Barcelona's Jewish community was profoundly disrupted. Many Jews were killed or forcibly baptised, and others converted to Christianity under pressure. In the following years the Call Menor became an important place of settlement for conversos, former Jews who had converted to Christianity and who kept close social, family and commercial networks there.
Conversion brought with it a public and theatrical expression of the new faith. A group of Jewish converts sought to found a church dedicated to the Holy Trinity on the site of the Call Menor's synagogue (documented from 1263), and in 1395 King Joan I of Aragon approved the synagogue's demolition to make way for it.
Discover the traces of Jewish Barcelona
These three places tell different stories of loss: a cemetery whose gravestones were scattered, a neighbourhood whose streets were transformed, and a ritual space whose exact location remains uncertain.
Walk the Call Menor, see the church built over its synagogue, and hear the mikveh debate on our 4-hour Rumours, Secrets & Legends tour,
Our tours include a visit inside Casa Adret, a historic Jewish house with medieval archaeological remains that now serves as a living cultural centre.
Explore our Jewish heritage tours of Barcelona and discover the stories the city still holds.
Frequently asked questions.
Why is Montjuïc called the "Jewish mountain"?
The name is generally understood to come from the Catalan mont dels jueus, "mountain of the Jews," after the medieval Jewish cemetery on the hillside. The earliest known reference, from 879, records the mountain as Mons Judeiqus.
Where was Barcelona's medieval Jewish cemetery?
On the slopes of Montjuïc, outside the city walls and overlooking the city. A charter from 1091 mentions land beside "old Jewish graves," and archaeological research has documented hundreds of graves. The cemetery was abandoned after the attack of August 1391.
Why are there Hebrew gravestones in Barcelona's buildings?
After the 1391 attack the cemetery's gravestones were plundered, and some stones with Hebrew inscriptions were later reused in buildings elsewhere in the city.
What was the Call Menor?
Barcelona had two medieval Jewish quarters, the Call Major and the Call Menor. The Call Menor was established in the 13th century beyond the earlier Roman walls and had no gates of its own, so Jewish and Christian residents lived side by side. Its synagogue is documented from 1263, and in 1395 King Joan I approved its demolition to make way for a church founded by a confraternity of Jewish converts.
Has Barcelona's medieval mikveh been found?
No. Historical sources point to two possible locations: the Banys Nous (New Baths), agreed in 1160 and including a room for Jewish use, and the Banys Freds on Carrer de l'Arc de Sant Ramon del Call. Stories of a hidden mikveh beneath buildings on Carrer dels Banys Nous remain unverified, and there is no confirmed archaeological identification.
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