Valencia Trader

Pirates Exhibition in Peñíscola

On the peninsula of Peñíscola, the stone halls of the castle, which the Knight Templars fortified and Benedict XIII, the tenacious Aragonese Papa Luna, in the 14th and 15th centuries converted into his impregnable pontificate headquarters during the Christian schism, is currently the venue of an exhibition on pirates and privateers. 

The exhibition “Pirates: Thieves on the High Seas”, organized by the Diputación of Castellón, and mounted by the theme exhibition firm Cultura Entretenida, explains the causes of piracy, what pirates did, who they served, and how they lived; as well as the ships they manned and the weapons they used.

The exhibition runs until 8 January 2007 and covers the lives and adventures of some of the most famous pirates in history.

The exhibition highlights the historical aspects of piracy, focusing on three eras, the first of which explores the beginnings of maritime commerce, up to the 14th century. The second part, concentrates on what is considered to be the golden age of piracy, from the 15th to the 18th centuries. The third section covers the period from the 19th century to the present.

The exhibit explains the meaning of some of the language pirates used, and how it differed among the pirates themselves. This is pointed out on various panels and tridimensional structures.

The castle in Peñíscola, a fortress atop a rocky outcrop overlooking the old city, is an ideal setting for the exhibition. The work on the castle, conceived along the lines of the Holy Land castles, was begun by the Knight Templars in 1294 and finished in 1307. However, the most important era of its 700 year existence is when Pedro de La Luna, Papa Luna, Pope Benedict 13th, used it as a refuge.