There are hidden gems in our cities everywhere and perhaps it only takes a little observation exercise to discover them. This is the case of Narcís Serrat, who curiously photographed this bust in the shape of a horse on the busy Rambla de Egara de Terrassa for Las Fotos de los Lectores de La Vanguardia. What is this sculpture doing here? is the question raised by the images of him.
Despite the excellent conservation of this façade, neither many passers-by nor the City Council itself have been able to respond to this architectural enigma. “It does not appear in any historical archive nor is it protected. It must be something of the owner,” confirmed the consistory.
Faced with this lack of answers, our reader decides to investigate on his own the bust that he discovered one day near where a friend of his lives.
The adventure of the investigation led him to a nearby watch store run by another friend, who provided him with the contact of Salvador Ycart, 84 years old. This lifelong resident of the center of Terrassa explained that his father knew the origin of this horse bust.
Ycart’s father, nicknamed the Cuban for having returned from the island of Cuba in those days when ships sailed across the Atlantic to make money, founded a tobacconist’s shop in this part of Terrassa.
It is a house from before the civil war located not far from the Mercat de la Independència. Years ago, this place was considered the outskirts of Terrassa, before the Rambla de Egara had its current centrality. The floods of 60 years ago in the city took place here, points out Narcís Serrat.
In this area of ??urban growth, taking advantage of the textile boom (particularly after the arrival of the train in 1856), a carriage repair shop was built to repair horseshoes.
This oven workshop made perfect sense as a place of passage for horsemen, who came from all corners of the nearby towns and who dedicated themselves to the peasantry. As was customary and due to its evident functionality, this informative bust was ordered to be built. Years later, the building was also used as a dairy, according to Serrat.
