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Museum of Rural Life

L’Espluga de Francolí

The three buildings that make up the Museum of Rural Life in Espluga de Francolí

The three buildings that make up the Museum of Rural Life in Espluga de Francolí

The Museum of Rural Life was founded in 1988 to preserve and disseminate knowledge of the rural world. The importance of farmers and complementary rural occupations, as well as the culture, art and customs of traditional life are brought together in a discourse that emphasises values such as hard work, patience and saving. Visitors can see all this throughout the centuries up to the present day and even into the immediate future, as well as the major changes that have taken place in the countryside over the past 100 years.

In 2009 the MRL was extended and its exhibitions were renewed. Thanks to the latest audiovisual technology our rural past can now be seen in a more dynamic and educational manner.

The MRL is a benchmark cultural centre with a weekly programme of cultural activities, as well as temporary exhibitions. The museum has a website dedicated to education where its educational programme can be consulted.

AUDIOGUIDE

Listen to the audio guide of this museum

All audios available

SIGNGUIDE

Watch the signguide of this museum

All videos available

SPACES

<p>A close-up from the Prologue Hall, the auditorium at the Museum of Rural Life (MVR) where the visit begins.</p>
Prologue Hall
Prologue Hall
<p>The Trait&eacute; Hall displays a unique collection of rural ethnography, with a total of 84 sculpture.</p>
Traité Rural Ethnography Collection
Traité Rural Ethnography Collection
<p>The Museum of Rural Life has a unique collection of miniature scenes.</p>
Miniature Scenes
Miniature Scenes
<p>The collection with carts includes the tractor as a display of the evolution of machinery in the rural world.</p>
Hall of Carts
Hall of Carts
<p>The museum&rsquo;s ecological garden, with the waterwheel and sink in the background of the picture.</p>
The Ecological Garden
The Ecological Garden
<p>Scenic view of the hall devoted to the three main crops in the country: grapevines, wheat and olive trees.</p>
Agriculture
Agriculture
<p>The fourth storey of the old MVR building shows the traditional conservation methods.</p>
The destination of the harvests
The destination of the harvests
<p>One of the scenes in the museum: the farmhouse kitche.</p>
The Farmhouse Hearth
The Farmhouse Hearth
<p>Glass cabinet devoted to the wood chopper&rsquo;s trade.</p>
The Complementary Trades
The Complementary Trades
<p>These glass cabinets use a light change to show a period photograph on the outside and tools on the inside.</p>
La vida al poble
La vida al poble
<p>View of the fourth floor of the new building, with a collection of wild mushrooms in the foreground.</p>
The Site
The Site
<p>Mechanisation Hall.</p>
A Pathway to the Present
A Pathway to the Present
<p>The hall where the visit to the MVR is full of reflections as we look to the future.</p>
Resources of the Present to Look Toward the Future
Resources of the Present to Look Toward the Future
<p>Entrance to the museum.</p>
The Seed
The Seed

OBJECTS

<p><em>Swing Slaughter</em>, Josep Trait&eacute;, 1987, terracotta sculpture, 61 &times; 38 &times; 30.5 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Swine slaughter
Swine slaughter
<p><em>Going to Midnight Mass Late</em>, Josep Trait&eacute;, 1990, terracotta sculpture , 34.5 &times; 21.5 &times; 27 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Going to Midnight Mass
Going to Midnight Mass
<p>This diorama shows the Christmas <em>ti&oacute; </em>nativity scene built by Sergi Mass&oacute; from the Barcelona Miniature Scene Association. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
The Christmas tió
The Christmas tió
<p>Funeral cart from Santa Coloma de Queralt (La Conca de Barber&agrave;). Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Funeral cart
Funeral cart
<p><em>Carro de torn</em>, second half of the 19th century, 360 &times; 192 &times; 167 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Carro de torn
Carro de torn
<p>Tipcart. Second half of the 19th century. Size: 480 x 173 x 175 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Tipcart
Tipcart
<p>Hanomag Barreiros R 335 tractor. Early 1960s. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Hanomag Barreiros R 335 tracto
Hanomag Barreiros R 335 tractor
<p>Waterwheel, 19th century, Palma. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Waterwheel
Waterwheel
<p>The ecological garden of the Museum of Rural Life, built in 2014. Museo de la Vida Rural.</p>
The garden
The garden
<p>A <em>trull</em> or olive oil press. First half of the 19th century. Size: 335 x 272 cm. Millstone: 3,200 kg (approx.). Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
A trull or olive oil press
A trull or olive oil press
<p>Threshing roller. First half of the 19th century. Size: 130 x 95 x 107 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Threshing roller
Threshing roller
<p>Mural depicting the different stages in the traditional cultivation of wheat, Lluci&agrave; Navarro, 1984. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Wheat mural
Wheat mural
<p>Wine presses in the old farmhouse of the Carulla family. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Wine presses
Wine presses
<p>Close-up of a pantry where you can see different ways that food was conserve. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Pantry
Pantry
<p>Birthing chair. Size: 104.5 x 74 x 52 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Birthing chair
Birthing chair
<p>Copper hot chocolate maker placed on the hearth in a kitchen. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Hot chocolate maker
Hot chocolate maker
<p>Blacksmith&rsquo;s anvil. Size: 62 x 20 x 30 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Blacksmith’s anvil
Blacksmith’s anvil
<p>Jack plane, 1789. Artistically worked with an attractive legend. Size: 8.5 x 79 x 6 cm. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Jack plane
Jack plane
<p>Jar from the Carulla apothecary in L&rsquo;Espluga de Francol&iacute;, with hand-painted decorations. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Apothecary jar
Apothecary jar
<p>Wafer receptacle with a roulette wheel. They were usually inscribed with the owner&rsquo;s name, in this case the wafer-maker Gerardo Fern&aacute;ndez. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Wafer-maker
Wafer-maker
<p>Scale model of La Conca de Barber&agrave;, an inland county in Catalonia. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
La Conca de Barberà
La Conca de Barberà
<p>The museum&rsquo;s herbarium, with more than 80 classified species from La Conca de Barber&agrave;. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
The Herbarium
The Herbarium
<p>Machine built in the J. Trepat factory in T&agrave;rrega (Urgell). Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Trepat reaping machine
Trepat reaping machine
<p>A Campe&oacute;n Type C2 water pump. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
A Campeón water pump
A Campeón water pump
<p>Pitchforks hung in an eminently artistic installation at the end of the visit to the MVR. Museum of Rural Life.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
Pitchforks
Pitchforks

INFORMATION

ADDRESS
FEES
TELEPHONE
WEBSITE
http://www.museuvidarural.cat
OPENING TIMES
GETTING HERE
EMAIL
info@museuvidarural.cat

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