Itinerary 4 The Renaissance and The Baroque

The Renaissance did not really take root in Majorca, probably due to the importance that the Gothic had assumed on the Island, which would explain the fact that many religious or secular works of the period still kept to the previous tradition. All the same, there are decorative elements connected to Renaissance ideas to be found (for example in the palaces of Can Veri, Can Trullol or Can Olesa, detailed at greater length in the section A Tour of Palma's Courtyards.) Whatever the case, one should make mention of Cas de l'Almoina, in the square of the same name, built in 1529, as it is an example of the balanced, symmetrical composition proper of the new ideas of the modern age.

Detail of the Baroque façade of Monti-Sion

Churches like those of Monti-Sion in Palma (begun in 1571, with a richly decorated façade designed in 1614) as well as Concepció, Sant Felip Neri, and Sant Domingo de Manacor, among others, were built in the Baroque style. Mention should be made of the novelty that elliptic forms represented, as applied to the chapterhouse of la Seu, the chapel of Sant Nicolau de Tolentí, and in the church of Socors, which has profusely decorated domes. On occasion, this shape was used for the whole of the floor plan of the church, as is the case of Sant Antoni Abat in Palma.

As far as secular architecture is concerned, the 18th century was a time of change and a break with the past as can be seen in seigniorial houses not only in Palma, such as Can Vivot, where there are some paintings by the Italian Giuseppe Dardarone, Can Berga and Can Morell, and also outside the city, with examples such as Son Berga in Establiments, la Granja in Esporles, Alfàbia in Bunyola, and Son Cigala in Son Rapinya. These novelties affected not only the design of the construction (organisation of the façades, loggias and balconies) but also the ornamentation.