Món Casteller Human Tower Museum of Catalonia facts for kids
Món Casteller. The Human Tower Museum of Catalonia (MCC) is an exciting museum being built in the city of Valls. Valls is known as the birthplace of human towers, which are amazing human structures built by groups of people. The MCC project is a team effort by the Catalan Government, the Tarragona County Council, Valls City Hall, and the Coordinator of Catalan Human Tower Groups.
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How the Museum Idea Began
The idea for a museum about human towers started a long time ago! A historian and photographer from Valls named Pere Català Roca first suggested it in the late 1950s. He wanted a place to share the culture of human towers. He even held exhibitions in the 1960s to show how important this idea was.
The very first meeting about the Human Tower Museum of Catalonia happened on July 26, 1978.
Later, in 1984, the Valls Institute of Studies continued the effort. They even set up a small permanent exhibition in 1985, but it had to close after only two years because of building problems.
In 1997, a new plan for the museum began. Experts from the Catalan Government, Valls City Hall, and the Valls Museum worked together to design it. For a while, they thought about putting the museum in an old military building.
Then, in 2007, Valls City Hall announced a new plan: to build a brand-new building for the museum outside the city center.
On October 17, 2009, the museum project was officially presented to the public. This was a special day because it was also the 40th anniversary of one of the human tower groups, the Xiquets de Valls.
A big step happened in 2010 when the first detailed building plans were made. In November of that same year, UNESCO recognized human towers as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This means human towers are considered a very important part of the world's culture!
Finally, in 2013, the project changed again. The museum would be built right in the heart of Valls Old Town, in Plaça del Blat, which is known as the "zero point" for human towers.
On April 22, 2014, old buildings were carefully taken down to make space for the new museum. Then, on March 27, 2015, a special event marked the start of construction. Thirty-four human tower groups built pillars at the same time on the future museum site! Other groups were also represented, and traditional dance groups like the Muixeranga d’Algemesí joined the celebration. After the first pillars were built, the "enxanetes" (the children who climb to the top of the towers) placed shields from each group into a special urn, like a time capsule. An amazing aerial show followed, with dancers performing high above, showing the values of human towers: strength, balance, courage, and good sense.
Construction officially began on April 16, 2015.
What to See at the Museum
The museum building is designed to connect two main squares, Plaça del Blat and Plaça de l’Oli. It also creates a new, round plaza that opens up into the old part of the city. A tall, 20-meter-high pillar of light stands over the building. This light changes colors to show the different shirt colors worn by the human tower groups!
- Ground Floor: Here you'll find the welcome area, a shop, and a cafeteria. This floor also has a special "immersive and sensorial area" that will make you feel like you're part of a human tower event.
- Mezzanine: This level has a learning area, an archive, and the Human Tower Documentation Centre (CEDOCA). This center keeps all kinds of information and resources about human towers.
- First Floor: This is where the main museum exhibition is, full of experiences and information about human towers. There's also a room for special temporary exhibitions that change over time.
- Basement: This floor is the headquarters for the Coordinator of Catalan Human Tower Groups.
- Roof: The roof is a viewpoint terrace where you can see amazing views, including the tallest bell tower in Catalonia!
The Museum Experience
The museum project is based on the famous motto of human towers: "strength, balance, courage, and good sense." This motto comes from a poem written in 1867!
The museum aims to make you feel the excitement and emotions of human tower events. It uses lots of videos and interactive displays to do this. The experience is like "A tower in three acts":
- Courage: When you first enter the museum, you'll see a huge video that connects two floors. This part shows the courage of the human tower builders and the thrilling feeling the "enxaneta" (the child at the very top) must have.
- Good Sense and Balance: This section is about the wisdom, experience, and technique needed to build human towers. It shows how human towers have grown over time, how their techniques have improved, and how Valls is important as their birthplace. You'll follow a path with five round areas that look like the base of a tower, with dynamic and visual panels.
- Strength: The last part celebrates the strength of the human tower builders. It ends with a multimedia show that captures the joy and excitement when a human tower is successfully completed. This uses different types of videos, including real images and animations.
Experts have also worked to create a special "Lexical Table" for the museum. This table helps select all the important words and terms related to human towers for the museum's displays.
The Museum and Valls Old Town
The Món Casteller museum is part of a bigger plan by Valls City Hall to make the city's Old Town even better. Like other cities in Europe, Valls wants to improve its old areas by creating new public spaces and making the city look nicer. They are also building new cultural places or fixing up old buildings.
For example, in Valls, they built the Espai Ca Creus, which includes a Civic Centre, the City Hall's Department of Culture, a Youth Service, and a large library that opened in 2014.
Videos
Discover the museum's building before setting museography
See also
In Spanish: Museo Casteller de Cataluña para niños
Images for kids
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3D drawing
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Working in Món Casteller - The Human Towers Experience
