Mallorca

"The Inca road, starting in Palma, runs to Alcúdia almost in a straight line and parallel to the chain of mountains, joining both bays. It is the main road on Mallorca, and it represents almost all the means of communication with the island’s interior. It starts near Porta Pintada, crosses the Hostals and then four towns.

At the feet of a low hill, covered by trees and crowned by a windmill, is the Sant Marçal Church, belonging to Marratxí parish.

We can assume that it has undergone numerous modifications. In the ceiling’s keystone we can read the date, 1714. In 1853, it was expanded at the neighbors’ expense with some grants from the government to add another chapel to the three original ones on each side in addition to the choir. It is believed that the statue of Saint Martial which presides over the main altar dates from the 15^th century. The baptismal font is particularly beautiful, consisting of a single piece of red marble. The church is isolated and represents a truly rural church, one kilometer away from the Sa Cabaneta and Possessió de Son Verí estates. The neighbors of Marratxí, totaling 3,090 in number, live far apart though, in fact, there are three main estates: Sa Cabaneta, 4.5 km from the aforementioned Pla de Na Tesa plain where the Pont d’Inca, Marratxí and Pòrtol groups of houses are. To the left of the church is the small cemetery. The church’s interior consists of a barrel vault held up by five arches, the same number of chapels on either side and the choir above the main entrance. Only the first two chapels are new. A domed sacristy with intertwining ribs and coat of arms in the keystone is attached to these chapels.

Shortly after enjoying a beautiful view of Alaró on the left, a featureless pass opens up between hills to enter a vineyard at the doors of Santa María. This town, with 1,145 inhabitants, consists of a series of small grey houses, 373 in number and of which 48 are uninhabited. Ten have two stories, while the rest only have one. All the houses have windows with sills. The majority are rectangular and often accompanied by a vibrant vine. Also common are eaves held up by arches, especially in Los Hostals. Some houses include a row of tiles notably sticking out over the roof, serving to channel water as well.

The church is dedicated to Nostra Senyora del Camí, her image presiding over the main altar. There is a not very pretty tower built in 1751-1753, covered in blue tiles and rising up to 166.69 m above sea level. The door is decorated with local marble appliqués and is Rococo in style, bearing the date, 1758. The main facade was built in 1757, with various, round windows in a similar style. The interior features a circular dome held up by seven half-point arches from which ribs intertwine forming a rosette and featuring a coat of arms. Also above the choir (found above the main entrance) are simple ribs crossing. There are five chapels on each side of the church, of which the fourth on the left, dedicated to Mare de Déu del Roser, was built like a small circle with four altars in addition to the main one, a type of construction we frequently see in many Mallorcan churches. The chapel on the opposite side is occupied by the entrance and the organ, built by the famous Mallorcan organist, Jordi Bosch.

We leave Santa María taking the Carrer d’Inca road and soon come to a “guixera” or plaster factory built in 1878.

There are groups of houses on both sides of the factory, a prelude to the town of Consell. The latter depends on Alaró, 4.9 km away. It has 1,077 inhabitants and 237 houses, the majority with rectangular doors and limestone lintels, located between prickly pears and pomegranates.

The church is small and has a bell tower above, rising up to 178.47 m above sea level. It has a doorway made of red marble from Binissalem, and the facade is today adorned with a clock. For many years Consell went without a clock, and it was not unusual for casual visitors to be frequently asked by locals, “Quina hora es?” (What time is it?).

The road narrows here to run between extensive vineyards in the rich winegrowing area of Binissalem. It later crosses through no less rich plantations of almond, fig, carob and olive trees, and where the constancy and careful care are the predominant note, especially as regards the fig trees, arranged in as straight a line as there ever was."

Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria. Las Baleares por la palabra y el grabado. Majorca: The island. Ed. Sa Nostra, Caja de Baleares. Palma de Mallorca. 1982.