Passeig del Born takes its name from the Catalan word for jousting field, and for centuries this tree-lined avenue was Barcelona's main arena for tournaments, Holy Week processions and carnival celebrations. The street stretches between Santa Maria del Mar, one of the finest examples of pure Catalan Gothic, and the cast-iron market hall of El Born, built in the 1870s as Barcelona's first large-scale iron structure. But beneath the revelry lies darker history: in the 1500s, victims of the Inquisition were executed here, and in 1714 Philip V's troops occupied the avenue following the Siege of Barcelona.

Today the street anchors La Ribera, the old artisans' quarter where Gothic palaces line narrow medieval lanes. The architecture tells the story of Barcelona's commercial wealth, when merchants and guilds coexisted in this thriving seaside suburb.

VoiceMap's self-guided audio tours trace Passeig del Born's transformation from jousting strip to market thoroughfare, revealing how wars, destruction and urban renewal shaped both the avenue and Barcelona itself.