Topos V, Barcelona, Bezoekersgids & wat te doen in de buurt

Topos V is a sculpture by the Basque artist Eduardo Chillida in Plaça del Rei, in the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona. Its heavy arched forms answer the medieval square around it, once the courtyard of the royal palace of the counts of Barcelona and the kings of Aragon. It is a modern work in one of the city's most atmospheric medieval settings.

The story behind it

Plaça del Rei is surrounded by the Palau Reial Major, a complex that served as a residence of the counts of Barcelona and kings of Aragon. It has three main parts: the Palatine Chapel of Saint Agatha, from 1302 under King James II; the Saló del Tinell, built under King Peter IV between 1359 and 1362; and the Palau del Lloctinent, built in the 16th century under Charles V.

Chillida was an artist who liked to set tradition and modernity in conversation. He worked with raw materials and used geometry to give his pieces rhythm and structure. Topos V can be read as an inversion of the square: its walls sit opposite to those around it, and the arches that rise from them can be seen as an echo of the towers of the church and palace. Some see in them a letter B for Barcelona, others a nod to the semicircular arches of Catalan Romanesque architecture from the 11th and 12th centuries.

What to look for

• Look at the arches rising from the sculpture and see whether you can read them as a letter B, as Chillida's admirers suggest.
• Compare the sculpture's walls with the stone walls of the square, and notice how the piece seems to turn the space inside out.
• Find the tower of the palace chapel and the other towers around the square, then look for their echo in the sculpture's upright forms.
• Notice the rough, raw surface of the work against the worn medieval stone, a contrast Chillida seems to have wanted.

Tips for your visit

• The sculpture stands in an open square, so you can see it and walk around it without going inside anywhere. Ten to twenty minutes is plenty, longer if you sit and take in the buildings.
• Early morning or late evening is usually quieter, and low light makes the stone and the sculpture's shapes stand out.
• The palace buildings around the square are part of the city's history museum. If you want to go inside, check current opening hours.
• Barcelona Cathedral and the narrow lanes of the Gothic Quarter are only a few minutes away on foot, so the square fits easily into a longer walk.

See it on a quest

Murder Mystery: Death in the Shadows in Barcelona is a good way to see Topos V as one stop of a longer route on foot through the old streets. The app tells you about each place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle on the spot. One ticket covers the whole group.

The Poet’s Trail: Secrets of Barcelona suits you if you like your sightseeing with a literary and artistic mood. You walk to the square, hear about it from the app, and solve a puzzle in front of what you see. One ticket covers the whole group.

Secrets & Poetry in Barcelona, Unlock a Hidden Legacy also passes this square. You can start whenever you like, with no guide and no group to join, and you learn about each stop as you reach it. One ticket covers the whole group.