Can Bruixa

Can Bruixa is a 19th-century masia, a traditional Catalan farmhouse, standing in Barcelona on the former fields of Can Batlló, in the La Bordeta neighbourhood (Sants-Montjuïc). It is one of the last witnesses to the agricultural past of this part of the city, now surrounded by dense residential and industrial blocks.

Where is Can Bruixa located?

The farmhouse stands within the block bordered by Carrer de la Constitució and Carrer de Parcerisa, inside the grounds of Can Batlló — a former textile factory that has been gradually turned into a public park and community space for the Sants district. Its coordinates are 41.369297, 2.135159, placing it in the south-western part of Barcelona, a short ride from the city centre.

What is the history behind it?

The building was raised in the second half of the 19th century by Josep Elias i Anglí, a market gardener who grew and sold vegetables. Its growth was tied to the construction of the Canal de la Infanta, an irrigation channel that turned the dry, unproductive land of this area into fertile plots suited to intensive vegetable farming. The new water supply led to the appearance of several similar farmhouses nearby.

The building was originally known as Cal Paretó. It later took the name Can Bruixa after one of its subsequent owners, Oleguer Rovira i Burés, son of a man locally nicknamed "en Bruixa" (roughly, "the witch" or "the sorcerer"). The nickname stuck to the family and, in time, to the farmhouse itself.

For decades Can Bruixa operated as a working vegetable farm, one of many that once dotted what is now the Sants district, before industrialisation and urban growth reshaped the area through the late 19th and 20th centuries.

What can you see there?

The building is currently in poor structural condition, worn down by decades of neglect and its proximity to the old Can Batlló factory. Despite that, Can Bruixa is considered the last surviving masia in La Bordeta, making it a rare trace of rural architecture inside a densely built stretch of urban Barcelona.

Barcelona City Council has approved a full rehabilitation plan for the building, budgeted at around 1.7 million euros. The proposal on the table would turn the farmhouse into an interpretation centre dedicated to the agricultural history of Sants and its rural community (the pagesia) — a space telling the story of an era when this part of the city was a patchwork of vegetable fields fed by the Canal de la Infanta.

How do you get there?

The nearest metro stations are Bordeta and Sants Estació on line L1, both a few minutes' walk from Can Bruixa through the Can Batlló grounds. Barcelona Sants, the city's main rail hub, sits less than a kilometre away and is well connected by regional and long-distance trains.

When should you visit?

Since the building itself remains closed pending its rehabilitation, the best plan is to combine a stop here with a walk through Can Batlló — a park open to the public year-round, with community gardens, cultural venues and neighbourhood events. Weekday mornings tend to be the quietest time to visit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you go inside Can Bruixa? Not at the moment — the building is closed while it awaits restoration. You can still view it from outside while walking through the Can Batlló grounds.

Where does the name "Bruixa" come from? It comes from "en Bruixa," a nickname given to one of the farmhouse's former owners, Oleguer Rovira i Burés. Before that, the property was known as Cal Paretó.

Is it the only surviving farmhouse in the area? Yes, Can Bruixa is regarded as the last remaining masia in the La Bordeta neighbourhood, even though many more once stood in this part of Barcelona.

What are the city's plans for the building? Barcelona City Council has approved a rehabilitation project worth about 1.7 million euros, with a proposal to turn it into a centre focused on the agricultural history of Sants.