The main purpose of this blog, as its name suggests, is to collect some things that are really typical in Barcelona. And the truth is that there must be few traditions that are more typical from Barcelona than l'Ou com balla (The dancing egg), held on the day of Corpus Christi. although it is also celebrated in other catalan cities and villages, this tradition has its origin in the Cathedral of Barcelona, and is known at least since 1673.
The idea of this celebration is to make an egg dance. The egg has previously been emptied, of course, and you can see it dancing in fountains of cloisters, courtyards and gardens that are decorated for the occasion with spring flowers and fruits.
If you have never seen it before, it is worth going to see the dancing egg, which moves playfully over the water. It is a simple but very mysterious ritual at the same time, which rememorates the consecrated host and has also clear references to the fertility of the egg.
The tradition was lost for a while and the city recovered it some years ago, so now you can go see the egg dance in various locations in Ciutat Vella, as the cloister of the Cathedral, la Casa de l'Ardiaca, l'Ateneu Barcelonès, the Archive of the Crown of Aragon or the Museu Frederic Marès.
There are so many surprising traditions in Barcelona, I love discovering them. I saw dancing egg last year and it is really worth seeing. Saludos, Aga
ResponderEliminar