Architecture sights in Spain
-
A
Cathedral
Seville’s immense cathedral, officially the biggest in the world, is awe-inspiring in its scale and sheer majesty. It stands on the site of the great 12th-century Almohad mosque, with the mosque’s minaret (the Giralda) still towering beside it. After Seville fell to the Christians in 1248 the mosque was used as a church until 1401. Then, in view of its decaying state, the church authorities decided to knock it down and start again. ‘Let us create such a building that future generations will take us for lunatics’, they decided (or so legend has it). The result is a cathedral measuring 126m long and 83m wide.
reviewed
-
B
Palacio de Cristal
Legend has it that an enormous fortune buried by Felipe IV in the mid-18th century rests beneath the Fuente Egipcia (Egyptian Fountain) on the western side of the lake. Other highlights include the 1887 Palacio de Cristal, a charming metal-and-glass structure south of the lake, which hosts temporary exhibitions.
reviewed
-
C
Granada's Cathedral
Granada's Cathedral is a cavernous Gothic and Renaissance building. Construction began in 1521 and lasted until the 18th century. It was directed from 1528 to 1563 by Renaissance pioneer Diego de Siloé, and the main façade on Plaza de las Pasiegas, with four heavy square buttresses forming three great arched bays, was designed in the 17th century by Alonso Cano.
De Siloé carved the statues on the lavish Puerta del Perdón on the northwestern façade, and much of the interior is also his work, including the gilded, painted and domed Capilla Mayor. The Catholic Monarchs at prayer (one above each side of the main altar) were carved by Pedro de Mena in the 17th century. Above…
reviewed
-
D
Castell de Montjuïc
The forbidding Castell (castle or fort) de Montjuïc dominates the southeastern heights of Montjuïc and enjoys commanding views over the Mediterranean. It dates, in its present form, to the late 17th and 18th centuries. For most of its dark history, it has been used to watch over the city and as a political prison and killing ground. Anarchists were executed here around the end of the 19th century, fascists during the civil war and Republicans after it – most notoriously Lluís Companys in 1940. The castle is surrounded by a network of ditches and walls (from which its strategic position over the city and port become clear). Until 2009, the castle was home to a somewhat fus…
reviewed
-
The Mihrab & Maksura
Like Abd ar-Rahman II a century earlier, Al-Hakim lengthened the naves of the prayer hall, creating a new mihrab at the south end of the central nave. The bay immediately in front of the mihrab and the bays to each side form the maksura, the area where the caliphs and their retinues would have prayed (now enclosed by railings).
Inside the mihrab a single block of white marble was sculpted into the shape of a scallop shell, a symbol of the Quran. This formed the dome that amplified the voice of the imam throughout the mosque. The art of the Cordoban caliphate can be seen to have reached maturity here, and many of the intricate decorative effects were carried over into Abd …
reviewed
-
E
El Monasterio de Santo Tomás
Commissioned by the Reyes Católicos (Catholic Monarchs), Fernando and Isabel, and completed in 1492, this monastery is an exquisite example of Isabelline architecture and is rich in historical resonance. Three interconnected cloisters lead up to the church that contains the alabaster tomb of Don Juan, the monarchs' only son. It's backed by an altarpiece by Pedro de Berruguete depicting scenes from the life of St Thomas Aquinas. The magnificent choir stalls, in Flemish Gothic style, are accessible from the upper level of the third cloister, the Claustro de los Reyes, so called because Fernando and Isabel often attended Mass here. It's thought that the Grand Inquisitor Tor…
reviewed
-
The Patio de los Naranjos & Minaret
The Patio de los Naranjos & Minaret Outside the mosque, the leafy, walled courtyard and its fountain were the site of ritual ablutions before prayer, while the arcaded walls would have seen much of the ancient city's hustle and bustle. The crowning glory of the whole complex was the minaret, which at its peak towered 48m (only 22m of the minaret still survives) and allowed the call to prayer to echo over the city.
Now encased in its 16th-century shell, the original minaret would have looked something like the Giralda in Seville, which was practically a copy. In fact, Córdoba's minaret influenced all the minarets built thereafter throughout the western Islamic world.
reviewed
-
F
Congreso de Los Diputados
Spain’s lower house of parliament was originally a Renaissance building, but it was completely revamped in 1850 and given a façade with a neo-Classical portal. The imposing lions watching over the entrance were smelted from cannons used in Spain’s African wars during the mid-19th century. Before becoming the official seat of Spain’s parliament, the building was home to a church, the Iglesia de Espíritu Santo. The modern extension tacked onto it seems a rather odd afterthought. It was here, on 11 February 1981, that renegade members of Spain’s Guardia Civil launched a failed coup attempt. Be sure to bring your passport if you want to visit.
reviewed
-
G
Palau de la Virreina
The Palau de la Virreina is a grand 18th-century rococo mansion (with some neoclassical elements) housing an arts/entertainment information and ticket office run by the Ajuntament (town hall). Built by the then corrupt captain-general of Chile (a Spanish colony that included the Peruvian silver mines of Potosí), Manuel d’Amat i de Junyent, it is a rare example of such postbaroque building in Barcelona. In a series of exhibition rooms, including the bulk of the 1st floor, it houses the Centre de la Imatge, scene of rotating photo exhibitions; admission prices and opening hours vary.
reviewed
-
H
Casa Amatller
The Casa Amatller, done by Josep Puig i Cadafalch, has Gothic-style window frames, a stepped gable borrowed from the urban architecture of the Netherlands, and all sorts of unlikely sculptures and busts jutting out. The pillared foyer and the staircase lit by stained glass are like the inside of some romantic castle. The building was renovated in 1900 for the chocolate baron and philanthropist Antoni Amatller (1851–1910) and is partly open to the public. Renovation due for completion in 2012 will see the 1st (main) floor converted into a museum with period pieces.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
I
Casón del Buen Retiro
One of the few vestiges of the 17th-century Palacio del Buen Retiro, this somewhat austere building overlooking the Parque del Buen Retiro is administered by the Museo del Prado for its students and is, sadly, otherwise closed to the public other than for occasional temporary exhibitions. If you’re lucky enough to see inside, make straight for the Hall of the Ambassadors where the expansive 1697 ceiling fresco The Apotheosis of the Spanish Monarchy by Luca Gordano is astonishing. The rest of the building has been renovated in a modern style.
reviewed
-
J
Palau Montaner
Interesting on the outside and made all the more enticing by its gardens, this creation by Domènech i Montaner is spectacular on the inside. Completed in 1896, its central feature is a grand staircase beneath a broad, ornamental skylight. The interior is laden with sculptures (some by Eusebi Arnau), mosaics and fine woodwork. Interior and exterior decoration depicts themes related to the printing industry. It is advisable to call ahead if you want to be sure to visit, as the building is sometimes closed to the public on weekends, too.
reviewed
-
K
Sant Cugat del Vallès
Marauding Muslims razed the one-time Roman encampment–turned–Visigothic monastery of Sant Cugat del Vallès to the ground in the 8th century. What you see today is a combination of Romanesque and Gothic buildings. The lower floor of the cloister is a fine demonstration of Romanesque design and it’s the principal reason for coming. From the train station, head left along Avinguda d’Alfonso Sala Conde de Egara and turn right down Carrer de Ruis i Taulet, followed by a left into Carrer de Santiago Rusiñol, which leads to the monastery.
reviewed
-
L
Parroquia del Divino Salvador
The Plaza Salvador, which has a few popular bars, was once the forum of Roman Hispalis. It's dominated by the Parroquia del Salvador, a big baroque church built between 1674 and 1712 on the site of Muslim Ishbiliya's main mosque. Before the mosque, early Christian churches stood here, and before them, a Roman temple.
At the time of writing the church was closed for restoration work and archaeological investigation, but on its northern side, the mosque's small patio remains open, with a few half-buried Roman columns.
reviewed
-
M
Catedral
Ávila's 12th-century catedral is not just a house of worship, but also an ingenious fortress: its stout granite apse forms the central bulwark in the heavily fortified eastern wall of the town. Although the main facade hints at the cathedral's 12th-century, Romanesque origins, the church was finished 400 years later in a predominantly Gothic style, making it the first Gothic church in Spain. The sombre grey facade betrays some unhappy 18th-century meddling in the main portal.
reviewed
-
N
Capilla de San Antonio
The sheer size of the broad, five-naved cathedral is obscured by a welter of interior decoration typical of Spanish cathedrals. The chapels along the northern and southern sides are as rich in sculpture, stained glass and painting as any church chapels in Spain. Near the western end of the northern side is the Capilla de San Antonio, with Murillo's large 1666 canvas depicting the vision of St Anthony of Padua; thieves excised the kneeling saint in 1874 but he was found in New York and put back.
reviewed
-
O
Casa de l’Ardiaca
At the northern end of Carrer del Bisbe, poke your head into the courtyard of the 16th-century Casa de l’Ardiaca. On the outside of this building, at the end of Carrer del Bisbe, the foundations of the rounded towers that flanked a Roman gate are visible. The lower part of the Casa de l’Ardiaca’s northwest wall was part of the Roman walls, which ran along present-day Plaça de la Seu. Inside the building itself you can see parts of the wall.
reviewed
-
P
Mexuar
This 14th-century room is the entrance to the palace. It was used as a ministerial council chamber and as an antechamber for those awaiting audiences with the emir. The public would generally not have been allowed beyond here. The chamber has been much altered; it was converted into a chapel in the 16th century, and now contains both Muslim and Christian motifs. At its far end overlooking the Río Darro is the small, lavishly decorated Oratorio (Prayer Room).
reviewed
-
Q
Capilla Mayor
Towards the east end of the main nave of the Cathedral is the Capilla Mayor, whose Gothic altarpiece is the jewel of the cathedral and reckoned to be the biggest altarpiece in the world. Begun by Flemish sculptor Pieter Dancart in 1482 and completed by others by 1564, this sea of gilded and polychromed wood holds more than 1000 carved biblical figures. At the centre of the lowest level is the 13th-century image of the Virgen de la Sede, patron of the cathedral.
reviewed
-
R
Universitat de Barcelona
Although a university was first set up on what is now La Rambla in the 16th century, the present, glorious mix of Romanesque, Gothic, Islamic and Mudéjar architecture is an eclectic caprice of the 19th century (built 1863–82). Wander into the main hall, up the grand staircase and around the various leafy cloisters. On the 1st floor, the main hall for big occasions is the Mudéjar-style Paranimfo. Take a stroll in the gardens out the back.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
S
Bellesguard
Gaudí fanatics might also want to reach Bellesguard, a private house he built in 1909 on the site of the ancient palace of the Catalan count-king Martí I. You can get a reasonable idea of the house peering in from the roadside. The castlelike appearance is reinforced by the heavy stonework, generous wrought iron and a tall spire. Gaudí also worked in some characteristically playful mosaic and colourful tiles.
reviewed
-
T
Casa Llotja de Mar
The centrepiece of the city’s medieval stock exchange (more affectionately known as La Llotja) is the fine Gothic Saló de Contractacions (Transaction Hall), built in the 14th century. The stock exchange was in action until well into the 20th century and the building remains in the hands of the city’s chamber of commerce. Occasionally they open their doors to the public but the rooms are more generally hired out for events.
reviewed
-
U
Colònia Güell
Apart from La Sagrada Família, Gaudí’s last big project was the creation of a utopian textile workers’ complex, the Colònia Güell, built for his magnate patron Eusebi Güell outside Barcelona at Santa Coloma de Cervelló. Gaudí’s main role was to erect the colony’s church. Work began in 1908 but the idea fizzled eight years later and Gaudí only finished the crypt, which still serves as a working church.
reviewed
-
V
Col.legi de Les Teresianes
Gaudí, like any freelancer, was busy all over town. He added some personal touches in 1889 to the Col.legi de les Teresianes. Although you can see parts of the wing he designed (to the right through the entrance gate) from the outside, the most unique features are those hardest to see – the distinctive parabolic arches inside. Unfortunately, it is no longer possible to visit the school.
reviewed
-
W
Església de les Saleses
A singular neo-Gothic effort, this church is interesting above all because of who built it. Raised in 1878–85 with an adjacent convent (badly damaged in the civil war and now a school), it was designed by Joan Martorell i Montells (1833–1906), Gaudí’s architecture professor. Indeed, the church offers some hints of what was to come with Modernisme, with his use of brick, mosaics and sober stained glass.
reviewed
