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Eixample · 08

l'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample

L'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample is the western part of the Eixample that was urbanised first, and today the Hospital Clínic, the historic building of the Universitat de Barcelona and the Mercat del Ninot can all be read in it.[1][2][3]

On Carrer de Villarroel, by the corner with Còrsega, the Hospital Clínic has worked since 1906 inside Cerdà's grid. A few blocks away, the Mercat del Ninot recalls with a copy of a painted wooden figure the name of a tavern from the 1880s.[4][5]

The Antiga Esquerra is the part of the Eixample's western side that was urbanised first and was already quite populated by the end of the 19th century. Until 2006 it formed a single neighbourhood, l'Esquerra de l'Eixample, with today's Nova Esquerra.[1][2][3]

Two major institutions have been based here for more than a century: the Hospital Clínic, inaugurated in 1906 as the teaching hospital of the Faculty of Medicine, and the historic building of the Universitat de Barcelona, which Elies Rogent designed for the new Eixample and which was inaugurated in 1874.[4][6]

l'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample (neighbourhood 08) highlighted. Other neighbourhoods in Eixample: la Dreta de l'Eixample, la Nova Esquerra de l'Eixample, Sant Antoni, el Fort Pienc, la Sagrada Família.

Where the name comes from

Etymology: certain[3][2]

“Esquerra” (left) denotes the western side of the Eixample, and “Antiga” (old) distinguishes this neighbourhood from the Nova Esquerra, which was consolidated later. Until the administrative division of 2006 the two formed a single neighbourhood, l'Esquerra de l'Eixample.[3][2]

The Antiga Esquerra lies between Carrer de Balmes, which separates it from the Dreta, and Carrer d'Urgell and Avinguda de Sarrià, which separate it from the Nova Esquerra.[7][8]

How the streets were made

Within the grid, public buildings arrived early and at their own scale: the University building, 129 m wide, and the hospital, whose works were finished in 1901. Sagnier's church of Sant Josep Oriol went up between 1915 and 1930 on a Roman basilica plan, not a medieval-revival one.[6][4][9]

The block interiors were opened late: the Cèsar Martinell gardens, the oldest in the neighbourhood, date from 1996.[10]

Dates that changed it

  1. 1859 Elies Rogent receives the royal commission for the University building and proposes siting it in the new Eixample.[6]
  2. 1874 the historic University building is officially inaugurated.[6]
  3. 1888 the first stone of the Hospital Clínic is laid.[4]
  4. 1893 an open-air market opens, the Mercat de l'Avenir, which people call the Ninot.[5]
  5. 1906 the Hospital Clínic is inaugurated, with room for 400 patients.[4]
  6. 1915-1930 the church of Sant Josep Oriol is built, by Enric Sagnier and his son Josep Maria.[9]
  7. 1917 Casa Sayrach wins the annual contest for artistic buildings.[11]
  8. 1933 the permanent Mercat del Ninot building is inaugurated.[5]
  9. 1996 the Cèsar Martinell gardens open, the oldest block interiors in the neighbourhood.[10]
  10. 2006 the Esquerra de l'Eixample is divided into the Antiga and Nova Esquerra.[3][2]
  11. 2015 the Mercat del Ninot reopens after its reform.[5]

People and collective life

Elies Rogent i Amat

Architect of the historic University building; in 1859 he received the royal commission and proposed building it in the new Eixample.[6]

Josep Domènech i Estapà

Architect of the Hospital Clínic, whose first stone was laid in 1888.[4]

Joan Clapés

Tavern keeper on Carrer de València who in the 1880s put a painted wooden figure, the figurehead of an Italian ship, at his door; the market's name comes from it.[5]

Enric Sagnier i Villavecchia

Architect of the church of Sant Josep Oriol; his son Josep Maria Sagnier i Vidal-Ribas finished the bell tower and façade in 1930.[9]

Manuel Sayrach i Carreras

Author of Casa Sayrach, not yet a qualified architect when it was designed; the plans were signed by Gabriel Borrell i Cardona.[11]

Institutions

Hospital Clínic de Barcelona

University hospital of the Faculty of Medicine of the Universitat de Barcelona, inaugurated in 1906 at Carrer de Villarroel 170; since 2008 it has belonged to the Generalitat de Catalunya.[4]

Edifici històric de la Universitat de Barcelona

Elies Rogent's building at Gran Via 585, inaugurated in 1874; today it houses the faculties of Philology and Communication and of Mathematics and Computer Science.[6]

Mercat del Ninot

Municipal market on Carrer de Mallorca, Carrer de Casanova and Carrer de Villarroel; the 1933 building reopened in 2015 after a reform that added two underground levels.[5]

What can still be seen

Edifici històric de la Universitat de Barcelona

Declared a national historic-artistic monument on 26 February 1970; Rogent organised it around two cloistered courtyards, the Pati de Lletres and the Pati de Ciències, on either side of a central vestibule and great hall.[6]

Basílica de Sant Josep Oriol

A minor basilica since 1936; burnt in July of that year and rebuilt after the Civil War. It has mosaics by Lluís Bru inside and a Venetian-mosaic frieze on the façade.[9]

Casa Sayrach

One of the last major modernista works in Barcelona, on Avinguda Diagonal at Enric Granados; known as the “cream house” and the “bone house”.[11]

Mercat del Ninot

Noucentista building of 1933 with a three-part metal structure, listed as an asset with elements of interest.[5]

What disappeared

The open-air market

The open-air Mercat de l'Avenir, opened in 1893 on the Ninot site, gave way to the 1933 building.[5]

The neighbourhood today

L'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample had 42,921 residents in 2026, a density of 349.5 inhabitants per hectare, a mean census-section income of €32,767 in 2023, an area of 122.8 hectares and 29.7% of residents of non-Spanish nationality.[12][13][14][15]

Non-Spanish nationality (2026): 29.7%

What is changing

FGC L8: the tunnel boring machine starts (as of October 2026)

The FGC L8 extension between Plaça d'Espanya and Gràcia will have a new Hospital Clínic station. As of 28 September 2026 the tunnel boring machine was due to start in October between Carrer de Llançà and Carrer de Vilamarí, and the long drive, along Gran Via to Urgell and then to Plaça de Francesc Macià and Gràcia, from February 2027. The Comte d'Urgell exit of the L5 Hospital Clínic station closed on 31 May 2024 because the new station is being built there.[16][17]

The Clínic on Diagonal and the Villarroel site (as of October 2026)

On 2 September 2026 the consortium for the new Clínic campus on upper Diagonal approved the advance of its urban development plan, with 2035 as the horizon. In October 2024 a working group was set up on future uses of the current Carrer de Villarroel site, and the hospital's director said the Clínic would keep working there. We found no published decision on the fate of those buildings.[18][19]

Consell de Cent at Enric Granados (as of October 2026)

The September 2023 ruling against the Consell de Cent green axis covers the stretch between Casanova and Bruc, with the new square at the crossing with Enric Granados. The TSJC dismissed the city's appeal in March 2025 and the city announced a further appeal; we found no later report with the final decision.[20][21]

What the guides leave out

A ship's figurehead that named a market

Joan Clapés's tavern on Carrer de València displayed a painted wooden figure that had been the figurehead of an Italian ship, and the name Ninot comes from it. A copy stands at the market's main door; the original is in the Museu Marítim.[5]

The cream house and the bone house

Casa Sayrach, of 1915-1918, won the artistic buildings contest of 1917; people called it the “cream house” for the white colour of its roof and the “bone house” for the design of its columns.[11]

Read it on foot

Start: Universitat (L1/L2) · End: Mercat del Ninot[5]

Walking (excluding stop time): 26 min · 1910 m · Estimated visit (with stops): 62 min

The geometry follows the pedestrian network between the four marked points, but it has not been verified as step-free. The approach from public transport is not included in the stated distance.

l'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample (neighbourhood 08) highlighted. Other neighbourhoods in Eixample: la Dreta de l'Eixample, la Nova Esquerra de l'Eixample, Sant Antoni, el Fort Pienc, la Sagrada Família.

1
Edifici històric de la Universitat de Barcelona
Universitat de Barcelona, Gran Via 585
Look at the central body and the two long wings of the façade on Gran Via, and at the clock tower; behind them are two cloisters, the Pati de Lletres and the Pati de Ciències.[6]
Elies Rogent received the royal commission in 1859 and proposed building it in the new Eixample; the first classes began in 1871 and the official inauguration was in 1874. It measures 129 m by 84 m and today houses the faculties of Philology and Communication and of Mathematics and Computer Science.[6]
Coordinates
41.38670, 2.16382 · OpenStreetMap
2
Basílica de Sant Josep Oriol
Sant Josep Oriol, Carrer de la Diputació 141
690 m · 9 min
Look up at the twin towers of the façade and at the Venetian-mosaic frieze beneath the gallery, above the three round-arched doorways.[9]
Enric Sagnier laid the first stone in 1915 and the church was inaugurated in 1926; his son Josep Maria finished the bell tower and façade in 1930. It became a minor basilica in 1936, burnt in July of that year and was rebuilt after the Civil War.[9]
Coordinates
41.38362, 2.15780 · OpenStreetMap
3
Hospital Clínic de Barcelona
Hospital Clínic, Carrer de Villarroel 170
920 m · 12 min
Stand at the corner of Carrer de Villarroel and Carrer de Còrsega and watch who goes in and out: patients, health staff and medical students share the entrance of a hospital opened in 1906.[4][18][19]
The first stone was laid in 1888 and the works, by Josep Domènech i Estapà, were finished in 1901; it was inaugurated on 23 December 1906 for 400 patients, as the hospital of the Faculty of Medicine. The new campus on upper Diagonal is meant to be ready by 2035, and future uses of the Villarroel site are under study.[4][18][19]
Coordinates
41.38913, 2.15176 · OpenStreetMap
4
Mercat del Ninot
Mercat del Ninot, Carrer de Mallorca 133
290 m · 4 min
At the main door on Carrer de Mallorca, find the copy of the Ninot, the painted wooden figure that gave the market its name, and notice the exposed-brick wall that encloses the building.[5]
Joan Clapés kept a tavern on Carrer de València with a ship's figurehead at its door; an open-air market opened here in 1893, and the present building, by Antoni de Falguera and Joaquim Vilaseca, dates from 1933. It reopened in 2015 after a reform with two underground levels; the original Ninot is in the Museu Marítim.[5]
Coordinates
41.38815, 2.15425 · OpenStreetMap

Sources for this page

Dates, figures and historical claims are linked to the records used for this page.

  1. [1] Ajuntament de Barcelona (2026). El districte i els seus barris (L'Eixample). Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  2. [2] Viquipèdia (2026). L'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  3. [3] Wikipedia (2026). L'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  4. [4] Viquipèdia (2026). Hospital Clínic de Barcelona. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  5. [5] Viquipèdia (2026). Mercat del Ninot. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  6. [6] Viquipèdia (2026). Edifici històric de la Universitat de Barcelona. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  7. [7] Viquipèdia (2026). La Nova Esquerra de l'Eixample. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  8. [8] Viquipèdia (2026). Dreta de l'Eixample. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  9. [9] Viquipèdia (2026). Església de Sant Josep Oriol (Barcelona). Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  10. [10] Ajuntament de Barcelona (2026). L'Antiga Esquerra de l'Eixample (L'Eixample). Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  11. [11] Viquipèdia (2026). Casa Sayrach. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  12. [12] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2026-01-01). Padró municipal d'habitants (pad_mdbas) — població per barri. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
  13. [13] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2021). Densitat de població per barri. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
  14. [14] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2023). Renda disponible de les llars per persona. Seccions censals. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
  15. [15] Ajuntament de Barcelona — Open Data BCN (2026-01-01). Població per nacionalitat i sexe. Barris. Accessed: 2026-07-17.
  16. [16] Ara (2026-09-28). A second tunnel boring machine will drill Barcelona starting in October. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  17. [17] betevé (2024-05-30). L'estació de metro Hospital Clínic perd per sempre l'accés per Comte d'Urgell des del 31 de maig. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  18. [18] Ara (2026-09-02). The project for the future Clínic foresees building 1,125 apartments around the campus. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  19. [19] Nació Digital (2024-10-21). Ja hi ha data per al nou Hospital Clínic de Barcelona, amb parada de metro inclosa. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  20. [20] 3Cat Info (2023-09-07). La justícia ordena desmantellar l'eix verd del Consell de Cent de Barcelona. Accessed: 2026-10-03.
  21. [21] Nació Digital (2025-03-15). El TSJC confirma la sentència contra l'eix verd del Consell de Cent. Accessed: 2026-10-03.

Last reviewed: 3 October 2026 · 21 sources consulted

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