Palau March, new museum in Palma

The Fundación Bartolomé March has opened to the public its main building in the Palau March in Palma with a view to making it an important cultural centre. Previously, the only area of the building open to the public was the outstanding library of Bartolomé March Servera, patron of the arts and promoter of the foundation that bears his name, who died in 1998, and youngest son of the banker Juan March Ordinas.

As from now, and after an extensive refurbishment, the Palau March has a museum that will hold temporary exhibitions and also exhibit permanently the collection of contemporary sculptures that Bartolomé March possessed in the Torre Cega in Cala Rajada and the Neapolitan Nativity Scene of the XVIII century that traditionally was visited at Christmastime. The visit to the museum will facilitate access to part of the palace and will let the public see the murals painted by Josep Maria Sert (Barcelona 1874-1945) to decorate the arches of the main staircase and the music room. At present, the new museum is showing two temporary exhibitions: "Josep Maria Sert en el Palau March", with models and preparatory studies of the grand murals that the artist carried out, and "Vírgenes de Europa", a collection of 40 religious sculptures of the mediaeval era.

The Palau March has also a new auditorium where concerts for chamber orchestras and contemporary music will be programmed and soon a café will open to occupy part of the ground floor of the building. The library, open to the public since 1970 and with over 2000 manuscripts and 60,000 volumes of books and other publications, has also been extended.

The palace, built by Juan March between 1939 and 1944, covers an area of over 1,500 square metres on the site of the previous Santo Domingo Convent, situated between the Círculo Mallorquín building (present Parliament of the Balearics), the Calle Conquistador, the steps up to the Cathedral and the Calle Palau Reial.

Visiting times: Mondays to Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. (April to October) and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (November to March). Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays and holidays closed.

Entrance: 4,50 euros, under 12 years free.

More information:

Palau March (Fundación Bartolomé March Servera)
Palau Reial, 18
07001 Palma de Mallorca
Tel. 971 711 122
Fax 971 725 803
www.fundbmarch.es

President: Manuel March Cencillo
Director: Basilio Baltasar

Photos © BalearWeb: Sculptures in the patio of the Palau March

Date of publication: 23/04/2003

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