The Enigmatic Gate: A Window to Centelles' Antiquity

The Portal de Centelles, an ancient entrance to the town of Centelles (Osona) in Spain, is a declared national cultural heritage site. The portal forms part of the ancient walls of the city built in the 16th century. The front part of the portal is formed by a semi-circular arch with dovetail stones, on top of which the arms of Centelles are placed. Four merlons and two crossbow loopholes are preserved. On the other side, there are no defensive elements but ornamental ones, such as a molded window, a small coat of arms and a large vaulted arched.

The creation of the walls of Centelles took place during the great demographic and urban offensive that took place in the town's nucleus in the 16th century. The old sagrera of Santa Coloma, an old name for the municipality, already had walls that enclosed it from 1329. Guillem Ramon II, baron of Centelles and count of Quirra, took over the inheritance of Centelles around 1537 and, between this year and the year of his death (1565), a total transformation of the town took place, during which the new walls were built. The Portal was reformed and restored in 1919 by the architect Jeroni Martorell i Terrats.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons