Cereria (candle makers)

What it is and technique

Manufacture of ciris (candles) and wax espelmes by immersion: cotton wicks hanging from a wheel are immersed again and again in molten wax until the thickness is reached. Office linked to the religious calendar of Palma: Holy Week, Davallament and devotion to Crist de la Sang.

Short story

• Urban office in Palma, next to churches and brotherhoods. Existence of a guild or col·legi of cerers in medieval and modern Mallorca: to be verified (no source located).
• Can Picornell (Palma): considered the oldest chandlery in Spain; It closed in 2010 (foundation date to be verified).
• Cereria La Real (plaça de l'Hospital, Palma): the family candle factory in Secar de la Real was founded around 1900 (grandfather of Guillem Ramis Carbonell). The store, according to mallorca.com, was opened by Enrique Vives between 1917 and 1923; another source gives it 125 years in 2024. Discrepant dates, please verify.
• 1989: Guillem Ramis Carbonell takes over the business. Emblematic commerce (Palma City Council / Government).

Process step by step

1. Melt the wax in large cauldrons; previously with a wood fire, today in a water bath with water at about 70 °C controlled by a thermostat.

2. Prepare the blens: cotton wicks are cut and hung from ribbons with hooks on a rotating octagonal wooden cross.

3. Tension: counterweights keep the wicks straight: 4-5 kg ​​for small ones, about 10 kg for candles up to 1 m long.

4. Banyar: successive dives, go up, let it cool, go down again. Pulley system to relieve weight.

5. Calibrate with a hole template to the desired diameter. A large candle takes about a week.

6. Color: A pinch of pigment gives the pale yellow tone.

• Wax with little oil: burns slower, drips and smokes less.

Forms and objects

• Ciri: long and thick candle for altar and procession.
• Ciri pasqual: the great Easter candle; Today almost the only one who burns churches.
• Ciri de processó: the one worn by the penitents of the brotherhoods.
• Espelma / candle: ordinary candle.
• Ble: wick.
• Associated devotional articles: images of the Crist de la Sang (only in La Real).

Vocabulary

• cera: bee (or other) material for making candles.
• cerer: one who makes or sells wax candles.
• cereria: wax workshop or shop.
• ciri: long, thick church candle.
• ciri pasqual: Easter vigil candle.
• espelma: candle.
• candela: candle (popular use).
• ble: cotton wick.
• brandó: wax torch with several wicks (to verify use in Mallorca).
• atxa: large procession candle (per verify use in Mallorca).
• fondre: melt the wax.
• banyar: dip the wick in wax.
• caldera: container where it is melted.
• contrapès: weight that tightens the wick.
• Davallament: descent of Christ, Good Friday; peak season.

Geography

• Palma, Plaça de l'Hospital, next to the Sang church: there are the only two candle shops left.
• La Real workshop in Secar de la Real (north of Palma).
• Why there: the demand comes from La Seu, churches and brotherhoods of Palma.
• Imported wax (China, Russia, USA, Spain) depending on price; there is no documented link with local beekeeping today.

Xifres

• 2 candle factories in Palma (2025): La Real and La Milagrosa. Only La Real manufactures by hand.
• 700-800 fine candles per week in the La Real workshop (2018).
• Prices: €1 to €80 per candle (2018).
• Candles up to 1 m; a week of baths.
• Can Picornell closed in 2010.

Why is it design

• Form by accumulation: the candle grows layer by layer; thickness is working time.
• Measurable quality: less oil, slow burning, less smoke; design of matter, not surface.
• Ritual object: the shape, size and color respond to a precise use (altar, procession, Easter).
• Vernacular tool: octagonal wheel, pulleys and counterweights, a workshop machine without a motor.
• Proximity: store and workshop in the same city as your clientele. See proximity design .

Where and who today

• Cereria La Real — Plaça de l'Hospital, Palma. Guillem (Guiem) Ramis Carbonell; Own workshop in Secar de la Real. It sells to many of the brotherhoods and to the Seu.
• Cereria La Milagrosa — Plaça de l'Hospital, Palma. Rosario Duarte. Store, there is no own manufacturing.

State

At high risk. Only one known craftsman in Mallorca. Churches hardly burn wax anymore; downward billing. Live for Holy Week and the Crist de la Sang. No replacement confirmed.

For the project

• Possible piece: contemporary ciri with La Real (shape, color or designer engraving); series for hotels and homes that maintains the immersion technique.
• Document the Secar de la Real workshop (photo, video of the wheel) before it closes.
• Contact: Guiem Ramis (Cereria La Real).
• Background question: what happens to a job when its ritual disappears.

Sources

• okdiario.com/baleares/historia-dos-unicas-cererias-que-todavia-conserva-palma-14
• mallorcamagazin.com/nachrichten/lokales/2018/05/20/62393/mais-der-letzte-kerzenm
• mallorca.com/es/directorio/empresa/cereria-la-real-palma-upqxowra
• mallorca.com/es/directorio/empresa/cereria-la-milagrosa-palma-lctl-ka4

Working text from the Disseny Indígena knowledge base, machine-translated from Spanish.

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