A unique private collection of 40 historical carriages, spanning nearly two centuries of transport history, currently sits largely unseen in Barcelona’s Vall d’Hebron district. A recent visit by city officials now signals potential public access.
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Jaume Pérez, 41, serves as the collection’s guardian, continuing a family tradition spanning three generations. He meticulously maintains the 40 carriages and 10 early 20th-century cleaning vehicles.
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The collection, housed in the basement of a building in Josep Pallach Square for 28 years, typically opens only for “very specific occasions,” Tot Barcelona reported. Pérez fondly recalls his childhood experiences within the museum.
“I remember that, when I was little, I came with him and he let me ride in the carriages,” Pérez stated, recalling his grandfather’s dedication to the collection.
Generations of Guardianship
The collection’s origins trace back to the Piera family, founders of Foment d’Obres i Construccions S.A. (FOCSA), the precursor to Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas (FCC). Antoni Piera i Saguès, the family patriarch, began as a long-distance haulier. He transported goods between Barcelona and Valladolid for the Can Batlló factory, a journey taking approximately three months.
This work allowed the Piera family to acquire one of Montjuïc’s quarries, later expanding into construction and municipal concessions. They secured Barcelona’s city cleaning contract in 1911, a service they still provide today. The family’s diverse activities included building infrastructure like the Spain Wharf of the Port of Barcelona.
The Piera descendants, particularly Josep Piera i Jané and Antoni Piera i Caporà, showed great enthusiasm for preserving vehicles from their various operations. These included carts for construction materials, cleaning vehicles, and the family’s private pleasure carriages. The first Carriage Museum opened in Magòria, later moving to Fabra i Puig.
In 1998, the collection arrived at its current Vall d’Hebron location. Pérez’s grandfather, a close friend of the Piera family, began maintaining the collection before his retirement. His son then inherited the role, with Jaume Pérez taking over a decade ago.
Barcelona’s Pioneering Cleaning Fleet
The collection features approximately 40 carts and carriages dating back to the mid-19th century. It also includes ten vehicles specifically used for city cleaning in the early 20th century. Pérez, the current guardian, knows the itinerary by heart, demonstrating the mechanisms of each piece.
Among the oldest exhibits is a long-distance cart, similar to those Antoni Piera used for his Barcelona-Valladolid routes. Other carts transported quarry stones from Montjuïc, wine barrels, or cable reels for city wiring. However, the cleaning vehicles represent a significant part of Barcelona’s urban history.
These specialised vehicles included the “colony cart” for rubbish collection and the smaller “type 3 cart” for the same purpose. The “watering cart” irrigated public roads, while the “sweeping machine” pushed waste to the pavement. Teams of three to four people then manually collected the refuse.
The company constructed most of these service vehicles in its own workshops. Except for one truck, all required multiple horses to operate. “Cleaning and rubbish transport relied entirely on horses,” Pérez explained. “The company owned about 200 horses and employed nearly 180 operators.”
Pérez shared an anecdote about the horses’ intelligence. His grandfather and father recounted how the animals memorised their daily routes. “When they reached the Columbus Monument, they knew it was time to turn around,” he noted.
A Glimpse into Private Life and Future Hopes
One notable vehicle, “The Patented,” dates from 1916 and holds an original FCC patent. Workshops on the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes built this vehicle. It hermetically sealed sewage waste collected from drains and transported it to the Port for offshore disposal.
The museum also showcases a selection of private pleasure carriages owned by the Piera family. These include luxurious models like the “milord” and “berlina,” alongside more common “tartana” and “jardinière” styles. A large display cabinet occupies three-quarters of the room, holding equipment, uniforms, horse harnesses, and various tools.
Tot Barcelona reported that councillors from municipal groups including Junts, Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), the People’s Party (PP), and Vox recently visited the site. This political interest highlights the collection’s significance. The recurring question among visitors remains: why is this not open to the public?
Manuel Marina, a driving force behind the recent visit and member of the Coordinating Association for the Barcelona Transport Museum, expressed hope for the collection’s future. “We hope that at least part of this collection can become part of the Transport Museum,” Marina stated. This initiative aims to integrate the private collection into a publicly accessible exhibition, preserving Barcelona’s rich transport heritage.
Originally published by Tot Barcelona. Read original article.
