The World’s Largest Cannabis Museum Is in Barcelona

Right in the middle of Barcelona’s historical centre, in the heart of the Ciutat Vella (Old City) and of a Gothic Quarter that amazes its visitors with its stately buildings corner after corner, stands the Palacio Mornau, a modernist building that houses a museum, albeit not of decorative arts, painting or sculpture, but of cannabis culture.

The palace was built in the sixteenth century and has since gone through several hands, uses and architectural styles. The last person to purchase it, in the year 2001, is the Dutch entrepreneur Ben Dronkes, the owner of the Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum, the oldest and most important museum of its kind, located in Amsterdam. Aiming to expand the mission and vision of that collection, he decided to buy the palace and embark on a meticulous renovation project. This was no simple task – quite a sensitive one, in fact, given the building’s status as a national monument.

The Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum of Barcelona now contains a permanent collection of approximately 8000 items related to the growing and use of cannabis through the ages, ranging from historical relics to the most recent objects, and touching on such subjects as medical marijuana, the history of hemp and the plant’s cultural properties. To all this, one should add the multimedia material to be found in the centre, with various short films that attempt to bring the visitor a little closer to the reality of cannabis.

The museum functions as a knowledge centre that promotes scientific research and fulfils an important educational and informative role. It represents an opportunity to rediscover the fascinating world of cannabis, re-meet its secrets and become enticed once again by a rich, varied culture with much to offer.

The exhibitions, far from being confined to topics bearing on the medical and recreational use of cannabis, also delve into other subjects that lie further away from public opinion: to mention just a few, the industrial applications of cannabis, a review of its legislative history and the horticultural considerations of its growing.

Since April 2015, the Palacio Mornau has been part of the Modernist Route of Barcelona, a tour of the city’s modernist architectural gems. The museum is open every day from 10 in the morning to 10 at night and offers guided visits and group tours. It serves as a different alternative, not to be missed by either those intent on an escapade or the very inhabitants of the city. As we plan our trip, the museum delights us with this valuable virtual path.