This pull-along toy, an excellent example of the toys that Josep Palau Oller produced from 1917 onwards – one year before Joaquim Torres García – was the property of his son, the poet and literary critic Josep Palau i Fabre. Palau Oller’s toys are characterised by meticulous design, still valid today, and handcraft of great quality. His toys, and especially this one, thrilled the poet Joan Salvat-Papasseit.

Josep Palau i Fabre (1917-2008) was a poet, essayist, narrator, playwright and translator, and one of the pre-eminent specialists in the work of the artist Pablo Picasso: Palau’s studies, and more than fifteen books translated into a dozen languages, are a point of reference for understanding Picasso’s work. He was also an activist, committed to the resumption of literary and cultural activities under the Franco regime, and he promoted various actions of cultural resistance.

When he donated this toy to the Museum, he dedicated these words to it:

For Ciril·lo: Ciril·lo was born in the same year as myself, 1917, but he will live for many more years, because he is in good hands, and when I am no longer here I would be happy if from time to time he would remember me a little and how we used to play together ... Grifeu, summer 2001.