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EL PLA ITINERARY
ALGAIDA
Oratory of Castellitx
Also called the Oratory de la Mare de Déu de la Bona Pau, this
is between Algaida and the Puig de Randa hill. It was built in the Early
Gothic style and was constructed after the Catalan conquest in 1229.
It has one nave divided into three sections, and a beamed ceiling supported
by diaphragm arches. There are records of its existence dating from 1244,
though at that time dedicated to San Pedro. It is said that the figure
of the Virgin, a carving dated 1430, was found very close to the site
of the present-day hermitage. Tel 971 665 022.
Sanctuary de Gràcia.
If one continues on up Puig de Randa, we come to a turning to the right,
signposted to the Sanctuary de Gràcia. The origins of this sanctuary
are to be found in the Aresta cave, a place where, in the 15th century,
Franciscan monks went to realise their vows of poverty and austerity.
The early hermitage that was the result of these first hermitic experiences
turned into a centre of pilgrimage, dedicated to Nuestra Señora
de Gràcia. The 18th century mosaics in the chapel to Santa Ana,
as well as the figure of the Virgin and the apse of the early oratory,
which has been conserved in the first chapel of the left of the nave,
are the main points of interest in the interior of the church. Tel
971 180 479
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The oratory of the Ermita de Sant Honorat, from the end of the
fourteenth century, was reformed in the seventeenth.
Because it is now a residence for retired priests,
it cannot be visited
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Ermita de Sant Honorat On the same lane up
towards the Sanctuary de Cura, one comes to the Hermitage
de Sant Honorat on the top of Puig de Randa. The first
person to retreat to a life of contemplation in this
spot was the Majorcan philosopher, the Blessed Ramon
Llull. In the middle of the 14th century other gentlemen
also chose Randa to initiate a life of religion and
applied for permission to build the hermitage. Nowadays,
it belongs to the Order of the Missionaries of The
Sacred Heart. There is a hospice with accommodation
available. Tel 971 660 998. Fax 971 660 992.
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| Sanctuary of Nostra Senyora de Cura Situated
at the very top of Puig de Randa, its construction was
begun in the 15th century. The Blessed Ramon Llull went
into retreat in one of the caves in Randa, and it is
said that it was there that his mission was revealed
to him: to write a book that would rebut all the false
beliefs of the infidels. The legend states that what
he had to do was written on the leaves of a mastic tree
in Hebrew and Arabic. The first College of Latin Grammar
was founded in Randa and was active until 1828. The first
chapel to be built in the 15th century was reformed and
converted into a larger church in the 17th century. The
sanctuary has a hospice with accommodation available
with a total of 22 cells, in one of the most ideal of
places for a panoramic view of the island. Tel 971 660
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The Santuari de Nostra Senyora de Cura is possibly the best known
in Mallorca after that of Lluc.
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It had a school of Grammar |
PORRERES
Oratory de Monti-Sion Still on the Randa massif -
on one of its foothills - but in the municipality of Porreres,
stands the Sanctuary de Monti-Sion, where records show that
a hermitage stood in the 14th century. The present oratory
was built in the 15th century, although it was later reformed.
In the 16th century, it housed a School of Latin Grammar,
with classrooms and cells for over a hundred pupils. The
pentagonal cloisters are surprising, as is the Gothic retable
with the figure of the Virgin over the main altar. Accommodation
can be provided in the small hospice - there are only three
cells available - and a restaurant.
SANT JOAN
Santuario de la Consolació Just a kilometre
away from the village of Sant Joan, the Sanctuary de la Consolació is
at the top of a cobbled slope. It was built in the 13th century,
alterations were made later and then it restored between
1959 and 1966. Tel. 971 526 041
PETRA
In the Santuari de Bonany, called "the mountain cathedral" for
its majesty,
Fra Juníper Serra preached his last sermon
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Sanctuary de la Mare de Déu de Bonany The
origin of the sanctuary was a small oratory constructed in
the 17th century, built to venerate the figure of a Virgin
with a legend attached: it had been hidden in a cave by Christians
to save it from destruction during the Moorish invasion of
Majorca. Later it had been rescued from its hideaway after
the Christian conquest in 1229. The sanctuary is a mixture
of Neo-baroque and Neo-classical, the result of alterations
carried out throughout the 19th century. The figure of the
Virgin is a Gothic carving. Bonany is thought to have been
the last church where Fray Junipero Serra, who was from Petra
and evangelized California, preached for the last time. The
sanctuary has five cells for accommodation. On the Tuesday
after Easter a pancaritat is held, attracting a goodly number
of pilgrims, from Petra as well as from Santa Eugenia and
Villafranca de Bonany. Tel. 971 561 101
SA POBLA
Oratory of Crestatx
The turning to Crestatx is to be found on leaving Sa Pobla in the direction
of Pollença. A primitive oratory was built in the 13th century,
but nothing remains of it. The new hermitage was constructed in 1820.
The 16th century figure of Santa Margalida, the work of Gabriel Móger,
is among its most notable features. There is a restaurant next to the
oratory. Tel. 971 862 141
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