Xàbia : Facts and Anecdotes... Did you know… that there is a third entity dedicated to the promotion of Xabia´s cultural heritage and the preservation of its patrimony?

... A part from the Cultural Department of Xàbia and the Archaeological and Ethnological Museum, there is a third entity dedicated to the promotion of Xabia´s cultural heritage and the preservation of its patrimony ? This is the private Foundation of CIRNE, which was created in the early 2000s and is supervised by the culture-loving and generous Benimeli family, who are also its main donors. The foundation was initiated by Enric Martinez, who had married into the Benimeli family. He remains  the driving force behind it. ( By the way, if you are wondering where the name CIRNE came from, it is Enric read backwards ! )

All in all, there are nine patrons of the CIRNE. Their aim is not only to preserve the heritage of Xabia´s past, but also to promote cultural, humanistic, scientific and environmental values. Hence they organise lectures, exhibitions and concerts of all kinds and regularly issue publications. They grant scholarships and provide funds for research and excavations. Furthermore, they have a library and an archive open to the public. Most notably this contains the historical documents of Antoni Llidó, a Xàbia-born priest who fought against social injustice and who met a tragic end in Chile during the Pinochet dictatorship. The historical documents of Soler Blasco, mayor and founder of the Museum, can also be found here. In fact, CIRNE´s next publication which is planned for the coming year, is a history of Xàbia´s Museum which was prepared by Soler Blasco himself but which he had never got round to publishing.

The Foundation´s headquarters and exhibition center is in 18, Avenida d´Alacant, property of the Benimeli family. This house is one in a row of beautiful patriarchal houses from the 19th century, which, incidentally, had been destined to be replaced by apartment blocks, but due to the joint efforts  of this family, the Museum and the Ayuntamiento, they have been catalogued and put under protection.
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