Camilo José Cela with José García Nieto.

History of legacies and bequests

“García Nieto was perhaps my best friend in the literature sphere. We were very different in character, perhaps we were complementary, and that is why we were so united." Words from CJC to the press on the day José García Nieto died.
The friendship that united Camilo José Cela and José García Nieto began in the 1940s, when both writers frequented the literary gathering held in Café Gijón, and lasted throughout the years, both emotionally and…

“Between these stone walls [...], my dream of giving back to the land of Galicia everything that it gave me and that is an irrefutable sign, the unmistakable sign that I have lived, becomes a reality”.
CJC

Since 1991, the Camilo José Cela Foundation has managed the Camilo José Cela Museum, a space for reflection in which to chronologically discover the life and work of the writer through personal objects, his library, his art collection and much more.

His lesser-known facets such as painter, actor, publisher or traveller can clearly be seen by all audiences, after the…

“I was born beside the railway tracks, into a family that had already had two generations of railway workers. In the fire of Las Rozas, some railway workers saved my life. It hurts me whenever a railway line is closed down for not being profitable, a reason which I refuse to admit; it hurts me whenever a locomotive is scrapped, and even when a nut is lost, and I dream of being able to make real and true my idea of ​​the John Trulock Railway Museum, to honour the first Galician railway worker at my Foundation in Iria Flavia. Nobody should be surprised that I feel and proclaim myself as a…

The Camilo José Cela Foundation is in Iria Flavia, Padrón, between the rivers Sar and Ulla.

Iria Flavia has excellent connections with major Galician cities such as Santiago (13 mi away), A Coruña (50 mi away), Pontevedra (22 mi away) and Vigo (40 mi away), and it is on N-550 road at km 91. The site is also close to the AP-9 highway, with an exit and entrance at the Herbón parish (Padrón).

The Foundation is a half-hour drive from Santiago de Compostela by car or train, and it is located in the artistic and cultural site of Iria Flavia. The site comprises the Canons’ Houses and the collegiate church of Santa María de Adina, and it may be visited in little more than an hour.

IMPORTANT: During winter, guided tours are only available from Monday to Friday at 12:00.

+34 981 81 24 25 or visitas@fundacioncela.com
 Or at our online reservation centre

TUESDAY TO SATURDAY from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 16:30 to 20:00.

LAST ENTRY: 13:30 and 19:30.

MONDAY TO FRIDAY from 10:00 to 14:00.

LAST ENTRY: 13:30.

Iria Flavia is located in a site full of culture and tradition, with a great heritage and rich in natural landscapes and gastronomy.

Other writers, such as Macías O Namorado and Juan Rodríguez de la Cámara or Juan Rodríguez del Padrón, wrote their verses here in the Middle Ages. The poet Rosalía de Castro lived in Casa da Matanza, where her house-museum is located, and other less known writers such as Manuel Barros and Nicasio Pajares were born and lived in Padrón as well.…

The importance of the Camilo José Cela’s legacy is mostly expressed, to a large extent, through its varied and, in many cases, original collections. The Houses of Canons preserve the objects donated by the author that he collected during his 85 years of life. His extensive library, art gallery, correspondence, original manuscripts and other collections make up this ensemble of unique importance for the history of Spanish literature and culture of the second half of the 20th century.

All this rich legacy is…

The Foundation is half an hour drive from Santiago de Compostela by car or train, and it is located in the artistic and cultural site of Iria Flavia (Padrón). The site comprises the Casas de los Canónigos (Houses of Canons) and the former collegiate church of Santa María de Adina, and can visited in little more than an hour on mornings and afternoons from Tuesdays to Saturdays.