The red brick and in neo-Moorish-style built Arc de Triomf is located about 300 metres from the Parc de la Ciutadella, the site of the World Fair of 1888.

From the Arc you reach the Parc de la Ciutadella on the car free Passeig de Lluis Companys. The sculpture Homage to Picasso, the world-famous sculptor Tàpies and an artificial designed water ditch evaluate the road.

The road separates the Old Town district El Ribera of the district Eixample.

The bats on the Arc de Triomf

You can find some stone bats attached to the triumphal arch. It was the emblem of King Jaume I. (1213-1276) (James of Aragon). Under Jaume I., Barcelona flourished economically and he liberated Valencia, Menorca and Mallorca from the Moors. On 31 December 1229 his troops concered the city of Medina Mayurka. The bat was his lucky charm. Th city of Medina was later called Ciudad de Mallorca and in 1717 it was renamed again in Palma de Mallorca, as the city was called in Roman times.
The bat is still the emblem of Valencia and was for example also part of the first crest of FC Barcelona.

You will find the bat again and again in structures of Modernism, the Catalan Art Nouveau. Animal symbols were repeatedly used in the Modernism, which symbolizes the independence of Catalonia. The dragon, which symbolizes the patron saint of Catalonia Sant Jordi, is a good example.