Sant Pere de Galligants

12th-century Benedictine monastery with exceptional Romanesque cloisters

A Benedictine monastery founded in the 11th century, now housing the Archaeology Museum of Catalonia's Girona branch. The church itself is a fine example of Lombard Romanesque architecture, with an octagonal bell tower visible from across the old city. But the cloisters are the highlight: two storeys of carved capitals depicting biblical scenes, foliage, and fantastic beasts, completed around 1150.

The archaeological collection inside covers the region from the Palaeolithic to the medieval period, with Roman-era mosaics and a notable collection of Jewish memorial stones from Girona's ancient cemetery — moved here after the graveyard was cleared during the construction of a citadel in the 17th century.

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A story
The monastery was founded outside the city walls deliberately — monastic orders often preferred locations where they could receive travellers and pilgrims without disturbing the urban fabric. The stream that runs below it, the Galligants, gave the monastery its name and powered its mills for centuries.