In "Landscapes", Guillem de Efak offers a panoramic view of the daily life of Manacor, showing how deeply rooted he was to his hometown.
It's getting light,
And one after another
Cockerels wake up,
And crickets sleep.
One after another
Candles are lit
On the altar.
One after another
Little old ladies
Early mass.
Whilst others put on the yoke,
A carriage has set off
Into the country.
It's getting light.
The mule knows the path
That leads to the land.
Saw dust
And
Wood shavings.
The struggle
With glue
And a screwdriver.
The sea has
Made a parting and
Combed his hair
much water, perhaps.
In the middle of his smile
has the first
Cigarette of his life.
He wants to be a carpenter
And today the boy begins.
He walks quickly
Towards the workshop.
He walks and dreams
About the carriage wheel
That one day
He will learn to make.
“Paisatges” Tampoc el foc, 1995
Translated by Richard Mansell.
(Asobla, Guinea Española, 1929 – Palma, 1995). The writer, singer and actor better known as Guillem d’Efak moved to Manacor, his father’s home, in 1932, and was a friend of Miquel Àngel Riera and Jaume Vidal Alcover. In 1964 he moved to Barcelona, where he became part of the group Setze Jutges, and took part in concerts above all at Cova del Drac. He also had a role in some films. In 1980 he came back to Majorca and left the music world, to work (amongst other things) as a tourist guide. His books of poetry were collected in the volume Poemes, cobles i cançonetes (1956-1993) (Poems, couplets and songs (1956-1993), 1994). He is also the author of the posthumously published volumes Capellet de vidre (Glass chapel, 1995), Tampoc el foc (Fire neither, 1995) and El món. Paisatges (The world. Landscapes, 1997). As a writer of drama he also gained some success with El dimoni cucarell(The ‘cucarell’ devil [a figure from folklore], 1977) and Gimnèsies i Pitiüses (Gymnesians and Pityuses, 1983). In prose, he also wrote Les vacances den Jordi (Jordi’s holidays, 1968) and La ponentada gran (The strong west wind, 1979). He also translated works of literature (Walter Scott and M. Poniatowski). With the passage of time Guillem d’Efak is valued more and more, his work is more widely read younger generations perform covers of his songs and put his poems to music. Throughout his life he had an indestructible love for his language and country.
With the Arabic name of Anacrad, this fortification was also part of what was given to Nunyo Sanç in the division of territory conquered from the Moors. It passed to the knight Pelai Uniç in 1233, whose descendants owned it until the end of the 16th century, when the owner became a Jesuit and gave all of his wealth to the order. The word "ignasistes", meaning followers of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, became with the passage of time "enagistes", and the current name comes from here. In the twentieth century it was bought by the council, who established a workshop to train masons and carpenters, who took part in the restoration of the building at the end of the 1980s. Since then it has housed the museum of the history of Manacor, which organises many activities to promote its own holdings as well as cultural activities on the east of the island. The building comprises two floors with separate wings and an interior courtyard. Between the 13th and 16th centuries it was altered and extended, but this did not alter its original style. The main entrance has a rounded arch. The mullioned windows on the first floor are worthy of note, as are the line of five arrow slits that run across that part of the façade. Inside, the ceilings are remarkable, sometimes in wood and others vaulted, either with arrises or barrel vaults. Another highlight is the porticoed walkway of the courtyard and the staircase. During the restoration the graffiti on the upper floor were preserved, the oldest of which dates back to 1401.
