Bonany's centenary brings to light four centuries of history

SinedThe residents of Petra, Sant Joan, Vilafranca, and Ariany are celebrating the centenary of the construction of the Bonany sanctuary church this year. The professors of Art History at the UIB (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) have done an excellent job of documenting and selecting materials and artifacts that help us reconstruct the history and experiences of the last four centuries of life at the top of the mountain. The exhibition is divided into four spaces where, based on the toponymy and history of the mountain and the Son Brugués estate, which gave its name to the hill, we can situate ourselves in this mountainous area halfway between Vilafranca, Sant Joan, and Petra.

From here, liturgical objects, paintings, a recreation of the old main altarpiece, and even the hermits' everyday utensils guide us through these four centuries of history. Photographs, documents, and objects combine to bring us closer to a society that has already vanished. A people like the ones who managed to build a new temple 100 years ago.

Andreu i Font's work is an enormous task of compilation and research, unprecedented in relation to Bonany. The exhibition covers everything from the variety of beans the hermits planted on top of the mountain to the votive offerings they offered in thanksgiving to the Virgin of Bonany, as well as the old tools they used to carry out carpentry or stonemasonry work.

This last point alone is worth a visit, and Andreu will give a lecture on September 26th at 8:00 p.m. It will be titled Votive offerings and popular devotion in Mallorca and Bonany.

However, the urban evolution of the sanctuary is also visible. Thus, for the first time, Andreu has created a plan showing the different construction stages of the church and the rest of the buildings.

In short, Bonany is showcasing its heritage in an exhibition that can be visited until September.