History & Curiosities
Sitges history and curiosities
From the Neanderthals of the Cova del Gegant to the modernista artists and the “americanos”: articles to understand how Sitges came to be.
Sitges is much more than beaches and festivals. Behind its white streets lie centuries of history: a walled town on the rock of La Punta, generations of fishermen, sailors and winegrowers, emigrants who made their fortune in the Americas and came back to build their houses, and a group of artists who, led by Santiago Rusiñol, turned the town into a landmark of Catalan Modernisme.
This section brings together accessible articles on the history, notable figures, traditions, buildings and curiosities of Sitges. They are based on official and specialist sources (Museus de Sitges, the Town Council, heritage inventories and published research), separate documented facts from tradition, and always end with their sources.
Explore the articles
Origins, the Middle Ages, the sea and trade: how Sitges took shape.
6 articles
History of Sitges
The first settlers of Sitges
Neanderthals in the Cova del Gegant, Neolithic farmers and Bronze Age burials: what archaeology tells us about the earliest people to live in Sitges.
History of Sitges
Sitges in Roman times
The Roman villa at El Vinyet, a sarcophagus turned into a fountain and the riddle of Subur: what archaeology does and does not tell us about Roman Sitges.
History of Sitges
The medieval origins of Sitges
From the first 10th-century mentions to the lordship of the Pia Almoina: how the medieval town of Sitges grew up around its castle, church and walls.
History of Sitges
Sitges Castle and Its Old Town Walls
From the bishops' castle to today's Town Hall: the towers, gates and surviving medieval walls of Sitges, and the artillery duel with Britain in 1797.
History of Sitges
Sitges and Its Seafaring Tradition
Merchant ships, voyages to the Americas and the Baltic, corsairs, fishermen and the Emerencià Roig collection: the story of Sitges as a seafaring town.
History of Sitges
Trade with the Americas and the Return of the “Americanos”
Ships, wine and emigration to Cuba and Puerto Rico: how the 'americanos' of Sitges made their fortunes overseas and transformed the town on their return.
See it for yourself
Museums, monuments and festivals where this history is still on view.
Museum
Museu del Cau Ferrat
Santiago Rusiñol’s house and studio, with his collection of wrought iron, painting and ceramics.
Museum
Museu de Maricel
Art from the Romanesque to the 20th century, in the Maricel complex by the sea.
Monument
Church of Sant Bartomeu i Santa Tecla
The Baroque church on La Punta, the best-known image of Sitges.
Tradition
Sitges Festa Major
Giants, folk dances and fireworks in honour of Sant Bartomeu, every August.