A BUILDING, A RECOVERED HISTORY

In the heart of the city’s walled enclosure is the former Convent of the Franciscan Poor Clares. A building of great heritage value whose special location within the town made it a privileged witness to the daily life of the people of Palma for more than 500 years.

Since its foundation at the end of the 15th century, its different spaces have been the protagonists of periods of great religious and architectural splendour, alternating with other more difficult and complicated moments, when it was on the verge of disappearing.

It was Juan Manosalvas, faithful servant of the Portocarrero-Bocanegra family, who, guided by a deep devotion, decided to found a convent dedicated to the Order of Saint Clare in five houses on his property. The first and only religious Order founded by a woman, Clare of Assisi, whose Rules were drawn up by herself for her Sisters.
Five houses that, with the passing of the centuries and the patronage of the noble Portocarrero family, were transformed into what is now the convent that houses the Espacio Creativo Cultural Santa Clara. During the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, the spaces and rooms necessary for monastic life were built: the church with its bell tower, the choir for the Divine Office, the dormitory, the refectory for meals, the new cloister surrounded by columns, the orchard and the Sisters’ cemetery.
Today, after its declaration as an Asset of Cultural Interest, it is back in the life of the citizens of Palmeiras thanks to an important process of rehabilitation and restoration, which has allowed the recovery of part of its historical legacy to become the headquarters of a new cultural project.

A BUILDING, A RECOVERED HISTORY

In the heart of the city’s walled enclosure is the former Convent of the Franciscan Poor Clares. A building of great heritage value whose special location within the town made it a privileged witness to the daily life of the people of Palma for more than 500 years.

It was Juan Manosalvas, faithful servant of the Portocarrero-Bocanegra family, who, guided by a deep devotion, decided to found a convent dedicated to the Order of Saint Clare in five houses on his property. The first and only religious Order founded by a woman, Clare of Assisi, whose Rules were drawn up by herself for her Sisters.

It was Juan Manosalvas, faithful servant of the Portocarrero-Bocanegra family, who, guided by a deep devotion, decided to found a convent dedicated to the Order of Saint Clare in five houses on his property. The first and only religious Order founded by a woman, Clare of Assisi, whose Rules were drawn up by herself for her Sisters.

Five houses that, with the passing of the centuries and the patronage of the noble Portocarrero family, were transformed into what is now the convent that houses the Espacio Creativo Cultural Santa Clara. During the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, the spaces and rooms necessary for monastic life were built: the church with its bell tower, the choir for the Divine Office, the dormitory, the refectory for meals, the new cloister surrounded by columns, the orchard and the Sisters’ cemetery.

Today, after its declaration as an Asset of Cultural Interest, it is back in the life of the citizens of Palmeiras thanks to an important process of rehabilitation and restoration, which has allowed the recovery of part of its historical legacy to become the headquarters of a new cultural project.