What to see

Giants and Big-Heads Museum

Home of Ontinyent's best-loved figures, in the Palau de la Vila: the Giants of the three cultures and the Big-Heads inspired by 1930s cinema. Free entry.

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The Palau de la Vila, which also houses the Tourist Office, is home to figures that locals hold very dear: the Gegants i Cabets (giants and big-heads), a tradition dating back to the 17th century.

The figures

  • The Giants represent the three cultures that lived side by side in the Middle Ages: the Christian Kings, the Moorish Kings (els Auelos) and the Jewish Kings.
  • The Big-Heads are mostly inspired by characters from 1930s and 1940s American cinema. Tradition says you run ahead of them shouting "Orelluts!" ("Big ears!").
  • Three Gegantons (smaller giants) have recently joined the family.

They all dance through the streets to the music of the Regall and the Menestrils on the eve and day of Corpus Christi and the Puríssima.

Practical information

  • Address: Palau de la Vila, Plaça de Sant Roc, 2.
  • Phone: +34 962 91 60 90.
  • Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 9 am to 2 pm; Saturday, 9:30 am to 2 pm. Closed on Sundays and public holidays. Check times at Christmas and in August.
  • Free entry.
  • Website: gegantsicabetsontinyent.org

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