Paradoxically, it turned out that there are quite a few of these compounds. Architecture was the first to come under the microscope as an area of possible relationships, and we found two interesting examples. In the Rose Garden, on the north side of the Imperial Castle, we can admire a fountain whose bowl rests on the backs of eight lions. It is a copy of the fountain from the Alhambra palace in Granada, which until the end of the 15th century was a stronghold of the Moorish caliphs ruling Spain. However, the fountain from the Alhambra differs from the Poznań fountain in the number of lions; We have only eight instead of twelve. Besides, it is taller and therefore narrower, and one of the lions sticks out its tongue. Some say that it was a deliberate trick of the Polish sculptor addressed to the Prussian Emperor. However, this is far from the truth.
The second example is located in the vicinity of Poznań, precisely in the Kórnik Castle. On the first floor there is the Moorish Hall, built during the lifetime of Tytus Działyński. Like the fountain of lions, this hall is also modelled on the Alhambra, which you can see in our gallery below. It was supposed to serve as a library, but it became more of an armory and a hall of souvenirs An interesting fact is that the columns in the Alhambra are made of marble, while in Kórnik they are made of cast iron, which is a rare solution in residential architecture.
Another area of relationships is people, and here we have two examples as well. The first is the figure of St. Isidore, the patron saint of Madrid and farmers, who, according to legend, was helped in the field by an angel and he himself had a vision. He was born in Madrid, hence he became its patron. Every year on the 15th of May there is a celebration in his honor, and in the small city of Estepona in the south of Spain, the same day is celebrated with an alcoholic drink (a mixture of brandy and an energy drink) named after Saint Isidore. The painting with this saint is in the Cathedral in one of the chapels (we do not say in which one – we invite you to search).
The second person who connects Poznań with the country of flamenco and bullfighting is, of course, Lech’s coach Jose Maria Bakero. He started his career as a footballer at the age of 17, played for FC Barcelona until 1997, m.in, after which he retired and took up professional coaching of football teams. Working with Lech was not his first assignment in Poland, as in 2009 he became the coach of Polonia Warszawa. He doesn’t speak Polish, so he is accompanied by an interpreter at every training session and press conference. His comparison is well-known: “Lech for the fans in Poznań is like Barca for the Catalans”, which refers to the high pressure under which the Lech coach is placed. There is no shortage of criticism, but he gained some recognition with a very professional reception of the ball during the match between Lech Poznań and Sporting Braga. See for yourself.
Spanish culture also appeared in Poznań in the form of painting. Our National Museum has a gallery of foreign art, which consists of, m.in, works by Spanish painters such as Francisco de Zurbaran, José Ribera, Diego Velazquez, Juan Careño de Miranda and many others. It is the only such extensive collection of paintings by painters from this country.
The above examples are undoubtedly stronger ties between our city and Spain. There are also smaller ones that can certainly be found in other cities. These include a week of Spanish cinema at the Muza cinema, Eva Rufo’s flesh-and-blood Spanish dance school, the Duende flamenco festival in November, and the Spanish restaurant Muchos Potatos.
As you can see, there are more examples than you might expect. There are a few more treats, but it’s our Spanish-speaking guides that they want to leave for their Spanish groups:)