Laberint d’Horta - The Story of Domenico Bagutti

The idea for this particular project was to create a dark, mysterious and fictional story based on real dates and original figures from Park d'Horta’s history in Barcelona, Spain. The story is about Domenico Bagutti, the architect and plasterer who built the first part of the park in late 1800.

For centuries, stories have been told about mysterious incidents that have happened on the grounds of the Laberint d’Horta park, in Barcelona, Catalonia. There are many reasons why the area of this park has remained undeveloped for centuries, and while these reasons might never be confirmed, some believe that it had to do with Maria Manbuela d’Ardena i de Llupiá, a woman who acquired the park in 1776. Although Jauje de Vallesca built the palace in the 14th century, which corresponds to a small fortification system, it still left the rear area of the plot untouched.

It was only in 1791 that Joan Antoni Desvalls i d ’Ardena, son of Maria Manuela d’ Ardena i de Llupiá, began building what is now the oldest part of the garden. Joan Antoni wanted the garden to be built around the Italian style, and so he chose the architect Domenico Bagutti to make this vision a reality. During the garden construction, Domenico and Joan Antoni repeatedly reported unusual and inexplicable incidents, but the following story is the most inexplicable one which is still told today in the region of Catalonia:

Like every morning, Domenico made his way to the garden around five o'clock. He always did the hardest work very early to avoid dealing with the grueling midday heat. It often occurred that the tools he left the day before were no longer in the same place, but he never thought much of it. However, one morning he felt that something was wrong as soon as he entered the property: The gate to the garden was open, but it was not opened by force. Only Joan Antoni, the owner and he himself had the keys, but the owner was away.

Domenico picked up his dagger which he always carried with him and took the small stone staircase past the growing caucus flowers. When he got closer to the bust of Hercules, which he had just finished yesterday, he saw that the head had been cut off. It is important to understand that sculptures and busts of Greek gods are an integral part of Italian gardens and parks, so having the head cut off was a big sign of unusual activity. Romans had a great appreciation of Greek antiquity, and in order for sculptures to come to life, they would hire the best sculptors in the Roman Empire, send them to Greece to make copies of the sculptures, and finally have the sculptors bring these copies to Rome. So much respect had the Romans for Greek antiquity.

The head was separated so cleanly and accurately that Domenico wondered if this was even possible with the tools available at that time. While he felt the strangeness of it all, he didn't have time to think about it any longer because only a few meters away from the bust, he found a feather like the ones many men carried on their hats at that time. Right next to the feather, Domenico found an imprint of a shoe on the edge of the path. He moved carefully in the direction of the fountain to drink some water and to keep a cool head. After cooling down for a bit, and getting his thoughts in order, he made his way to inspect the rest of the park area.

To Domenico’s surprise, the plants and the green areas were in perfect condition and when he arrived at the sculpture of Achilles, it didn't seem to have any harm at first glance. However, upon closer inspection, he could see damage to the sculpture’s heel. The only place where, according to the old saying, he's vulnerable. It is just a coincidence or something else behind it, thought Domenico. He asked himself whether these were made by a thief or was it just vandalism? Are there perhaps supernatural forces behind all the incidents? Confused, he tried to concentrate on his work and returned to the well to fetch water for the plants.

At the same fountain where he had previously refreshed himself, there was now a bitten apple. A bitten apple at this time of year, he thought to himself, is almost impossible. Since the apple also played a mythical role in antiquity, Domenico didn't believe in earthly actions in the park. In addition to this, the apple wasn't there 30 minutes before, which made Domenico doubt his state of mind.

He sank in front of the well and was paralyzed for a moment. When he came back to his senses, he noticed a shadow that quickly vanished into the old dungeon of the palace. With the last of his strength, he approached the palace, but the door to the old kerker was locked. He looked around and saw the bust of Hercules in the distance: It was back to its original form, untouched, with the head still on the sculpture, and Hercules’ eyes shining brightly as if he were looking straight into the sun.

After that day, Domenico Bagutti was never seen again. Since then, there have been many rumors about the Italian architect. Some say he returned to Italy after the events and never went back to Catalonia. Some however believe that after he looked into the glaring eyes of Hercules’ sculpture, Domenico froze, and has been standing in the Laberint d’Horta ever since, engaging in bitter fights with the other ancient figures night after night.