Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau

Designed by master architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner and built between 1901 and 1930 through a bequest from banker Pau Gil. Functioned as a public hospital for nearly a century before its cultural restoration as a UNESCO site.

Encompasses 27 standalone red-brick pavilions connected by over a kilometer of underground medical tunnels. Oriented 45 degrees off the Eixample street grid to maximize solar exposure and Mediterranean sea breezes for natural healing.

Conspiracy theories posited secret occult codes in the decorative mosaics, though Domènech i Montaner was applying pioneering hygienic principles that connected beauty, color, and nature with medical recovery.