montserrat (mountain)

Montserrat is a mountain near Barcelona, in Catalonia, in Spain. It is the site of a Benedictine abbey, which hosts the Virgin of Montserrat sanctuary and which is identified by some with the location of the Holy Grail in Arthurian myth. The name "Montserrat" literally means "jagged mountain" and is used because of the peculiar aspect of the edifice, which is visible from a great distance. It is composed of strikingly pink conglomerate, a form of sedimentary rock. It is very popular with climbers. The abbey can be reached by road, or by the Montserrat Rack Railway from Monistrol in the valley below, which in turn can be reached by Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya train from Barcelona's Plaa d'Espanya station. From the abbey a funicular railway goes up to the top of the mountain, where there are various abandoned hovels in the cliff faces that were previously the abodes of reclusive monks. The island of Montserrat in the Caribbean Sea was named after the mountain by Christopher Columbus in 1493. Montserrat or Maria de Montserrat is a popular name for girls in Catalonia and several other parts of Spain. The name is commonly abbreviated to Montse.

External links

Monestir de Santa Maria de Montserrat (in Catalan; photos of the mountain)
Monestir de Montserrat (in Catalan; photos of the abbey and statue of the Virgin of Montserrat)
Photographs of Montserrat and Catalonia (in English)
Patronage and Piety: Montserrat and the Royal House of Medieval Catalonia-Aragon (in English; a detailed history of the abbey)

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