Nocturnal birds of prey and the ethnographic museum «El Granero», with traditional farming tools.
When night falls, small winged figures with frayed edges cut through the air. They glide through the streets of our towns and cities like ghosts. Their long ear tufts, facial discs and unmistakable eyes are designed for life in the absence of light. In old Europe they were always linked to legends, witches' sabbaths and superstitions: their nocturnal habits and their association with ruined or religious buildings did the rest to demonise nocturnal birds of prey.
Thousands of these anecdotes and legends run through the different European languages, doing a disservice to these birds which, thanks to their diet, rid the countryside and cities of plagues of rodents and insects. The truth is that since ancient times nocturnal birds of prey have been bound up with our homes, whether in the countryside or in the city, benefiting us but also feeding these superstitions.
The introduction of new manufacturing materials and the start of mechanised mass production brought substantial changes to the way farmers worked. The traditional tools made by local carpenters and blacksmiths began to be replaced by industrially made tools and machines that made their tasks easier and more efficient. «El Granero» displays ploughs, tools and various farming implements used in other times, integrated into an area dedicated to nocturnal birds of prey, inhabitants of many of these places.
In this gallery you can get to know a small (but very important) group of species:
