Mint set BU – Issue 2

The Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Poblet lies at the foot of the Prades Mountains in the province of Tarragona. Its foundation dates back to 1151, when Count Ramon Berenguer IV of Barcelona settled Cistercians from the Fontfroide monastery in southern France there. This took place during the expansion of Christian rule southward. In the newly conquered territories, monasteries assumed religious, economic and organizational tasks.

In its older parts, the complex follows the ideals of the Cistercian Order, which aspired to simple architecture and a communal life regulated by prayer and work. The chapter house, refectory, library, sleeping quarters and utility buildings, among others, are grouped around the monastery church and cloister. Later extensions added Gothic forms, a royal palace and extensive fortifications with walls, towers and gate structures.

Poblet was closely connected with the rulers of the Crown of Aragón. Several kings supported the monastery and designated it as their burial place. The monastery church contains the tombs of various monarchs, including Jakob I and Peter IV. The combination of a Cistercian monastery, fortified residence and royal pantheon reflects the political order of medieval Aragón, whose dominion at times encompassed large parts of the western Mediterranean.

In the course of the liberal dissolution of monasteries, the community was expelled in 1835. The buildings and tombs were subsequently looted or damaged. Comprehensive restoration began in the 20th century; Cistercians returned in 1940. Since then, Poblet has once again been an inhabited monastery and not merely a historic monument.

The coin issue belongs to the Spanish series on the sites in the country inscribed on the World Heritage List. The motifs are generally selected according to the chronological order of their inscription. This explains why Poblet was issued after the Spanish sites covered previously.