Renowned gynaecologist Marisa López-Teijón handed over the keys to Canyelles’ medieval castle on Friday, donating the entire Garraf property and its gardens to the village in a public ceremony. The castle, a protected National Heritage site, maintains its original medieval structure and served as a family home until 15 years ago. López-Teijón bought it with her own funds specifically to give it back to the community as a gesture of gratitude to the place that inspired her.
The doctor, who specialises in assisted reproduction, joked that she’s now moving from creating embryos to creating homes. She’s launching social projects and building affordable, sustainable housing for the young people she helped bring into the world. López-Teijón, born in Villafranca del Bierzo in 1960, won the Ig Nobel Prize in Medicine in the US (2027) and Spain’s National Medicine Prize for the 21st Century (2021). This year, Forbes included her in its list of Catalunya’s 100 most influential women.
After the notarial signing, she symbolically handed the keys to Canyelles residents and announced the donation by hanging the village flag from the castle balcony, which she now calls collective heritage. The ceremony included cultural performances and fireworks following speeches. López-Teijón read a fairy tale she wrote to the village children sitting in the front row, a fantasy about how they now own the medieval building.
In her speech, she declared her love for the village where she chose to live and said she wanted to give back what she’s received from it. Generalitat president Josep Rull called López-Teijón one of the world’s most important and influential scientists, pioneering the creation of life through science. Meanwhile, mayor Rosa Huguet celebrated the castle becoming municipal property, highlighting how the act unites antiquity with the present and future.
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