Old Craft Revived: Free Dry-Stone Course in Raixa

Old Craft Revived: Free Dry-Stone Course in Raixa

Practical introduction to piedra en seco for everyone aged 16 and over

If you stroll across the Raixa estate near Bunyola on a fresh May day, you smell earth and olive leaves, occasionally hear the rush of the Ma-10 in the valley, and see how natural stone walls hold together the terraces of the Tramuntana. It is precisely there that the island council is once again offering a free course that step by step introduces the technique of dry-stone walling.

The training runs on four days: 8, 9, 16 and 23 May. In total the offer comprises 17 hours of instruction, spread over an evening hour of theory as an introduction and several morning sessions with practical work. Up to twelve people aged 16 and over can take part; professional construction sites are explicitly excluded. At the end of the course, participants receive a certificate of attendance; local reporting on the craft includes Stone by Stone: Margers Receive State Certificate.

The program covers basics such as understanding packing and wedge action, the correct selection and placement of stones without mortar, as well as the maintenance and repair of an existing wall section on the grounds. Unlike machine work, this is about feel, patience and close observation: each layer of stone is a small puzzle.

The island council points out that dry-stone walls not only shape the landscape but also create ecological niches. In the Serra de Tramuntana such walls have held terraces, regulated water runoff and provided habitat for plants and small animals. Since 2018 the building method has officially been recognized as intangible cultural heritage of humanity. Discussions about certification and recognition can be found in pieces such as Stone by Stone: State Certificate for Margers – a Victory with Unanswered Questions.

Those who want to take part must register by 5 May; registration is done via an online form provided by the island council. Places are limited, so prompt registration is recommended. No prior knowledge is required – dirty hands and curiosity are enough.

These courses offer more than technique: at Raixa you see people of different ages working side by side, talking and laughing, while at the edge goat-like noises are absent and instead a gardener trims the cypresses. For many participants what they learn later proves useful in their own garden, on small plots or as a contribution to preserving the landscape.

The small, practical impulse also has a larger effect: if more people know the traditional building method, the chance increases that walls will be properly repaired instead of being covered with concrete. And for the island that is more than nostalgia – it is a form of practical landscape care.

If you fancy sorting stones on a sunny May day, checking edges and seeing a stable wall at the end, Raixa offers a good opportunity. A place in the course means learning to carry on a piece of the island's history by hand.