Category Archives: Guide of Seville

The most complete guide of Seville. All the monuments and points of interest in the city over a beautiful map. Don’t miss anything about the city

BATHS OF THE MOORISH QUEEN

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These are Almohad baths from the 13th century, which originally constituted one of the largest public baths built in Al Ándalus. After the Christian conquest of the city, they were ceded by Alfonso X to his stepmother, Queen Juana de Ponthieu. That would probably be the origin of the name. From 'Baños Moros de la Reina' would have derived 'Baños de la Reina Moor', since given the location of the complex, so far from the Alcázar, it is very unlikely that they were used by the wives of the kings or emirs of the city in Muslim era.

They continued to be used as baths after the Christian conquest of the city until the 16th century. Later a community of Augustinian nuns would settle there and in the 19th century it would become a headquarters of the Command of Engineers. The old barracks would be demolished in 1976 during the eighties the archaeological excavations began.

The baths are articulated around a large patio, surrounded by columns with muqarna capitals. This patio was originally covered by a vault and was probably the temperate room. The porticoed spaces that open around the patio are covered with barrel vaults, in which skylights open, with the starry shape so characteristic of Arab baths.

At the end of the patio two adjoining rectangular rooms open up, which would originally be the hot and cold rooms.

Currently, the Baths are annexed to the Brotherhood of Veracruz, which is co-owner of the property and manages its visits.

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ARAB BATHS OF THE GIRALDA BAR

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In the Bar Giralda Brewery, one of the many public baths that Isbiliya had has been preserved. In this case, it has the particularity that they were probably the closest to the great aljama mosque.

They have been dated to the beginning of the 12th century, in the Almoravid period and are probably the best preserved in Seville. They are built of brick and have a large central space, covered by a vaulted ceiling resting on tubes, which are supported by semicircular arches. The arches, in turn, rest on Tuscan columns, added later to replace the original support, which in all probability would be brick pillars.

On both sides of this central space there are two smaller ones, covered by a barrel vault. Most likely, the central space served as a warm room and those on the sides were the cold and hot rooms.

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ARAB BATHS OF THE MESON DEL MORO

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In this space currently occupied by a restaurant, the remains of one of the numerous public baths that Islamic Seville had have been preserved.

They date back to the 12th century and have preserved part of their original brick structure, with semicircular vaults resting on arches, some of which are horseshoe shaped. We can also see the original starry skylights, so characteristic of Arab baths.

The so-called Mesón del Moro was established in the building that the baths occupy, a lodging place whose origins some authors date back to the Middle Ages. Apparently, the name would derive from a concession of the Catholic Monarchs according to which all Muslims who stayed in the city had to do so in this establishment.

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SEVILLE CITY HALL

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The Sevillian town hall has its headquarters in a magnificent 16th century building, which preserves much of its façade traces of the exquisite Plateresque Renaissance style in which it was built.

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The building was originally attached to the Casa Grande de San Francisco convent, which originally occupied the entire area of Plaza Nueva and its adjacent blocks. The works began around 1527, coinciding with the stay of Emperor Charles V in the city to celebrate his marriage to Isabel of Portugal. Throughout the century, different architects succeeded one another in directing the works, such as Diego de Riaño, Juan Sánchez, Hernán Ruiz II or Benvenuto Tortello.

In the 19th century, following the disappearance of the San Francisco convent, the building was significantly expanded. It was then that the neoclassical façade facing Plaza Nueva was built, the work of Balbino Marrón (1861) and the extension of the façade towards Plaza de San Francisco, directed by Demetrio de los Ríos (1868).

Towards the outside, the exquisite Plateresque decoration of the part built in the 16th century stands out. We can see a complex iconographic program, full of mythological characters and references to Roman antiquity, mixed with the emblems of Carlos V. In this way, it was intended to exalt the city's past, relating it to the glorification of the figure of the emperor . In this way, the aim was to consolidate Seville as the most important city of that great empire that took shape during the 16th century.

On both sides of the arch that originally gave access to the Convent of San Francisco we see two niches with the figures of Hercules and Julius Caesar. Both characters are considered the mythological and historical founders of the city. The sculptures were added in 1854 one of the extensive restorations undertaken on the building's façade. They are the work of Vicente Hernández Couquet.

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ROYAL AUDIENCE OF SEVILLE

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The Royal Court was the highest judicial institution in the city and settled in this space since the beginning of the 16th century, when it moved from its previous headquarters in the Casa de Pilatos. The current building would be built in the Renaissance style at the end of the same century by order of Felipe II.

However, the building that we can see today is far from the original, due to the numerous historical vicissitudes it has gone through.

In 1918 there was a great fire that destroyed it to a large extent and forced the transfer of the courts to Almirante Apocada street, to the place where the General Archive of Andalusia is located today.

After the fire, Aníbal González was in charge of remodeling the property, giving it its current appearance. In the 1970s it underwent another important transformation with the aim of making it the headquarters of the old Caja de San Fernando. Today it houses the headquarters of the CajaSol Foundation.

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ROYAL SHIPYARDS

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Las Atarazanas de Sevilla was an immense space dedicated to the manufacture, repair and storage of ships. Its construction began in the mid-13th century by order of Alfonso X the Wise, although it is known that there were already some shipyards in the area since Almohad times, ordered to be built by the Caliph Abu Yacub Yusuf. They were built taking advantage of the protection of the network of walls in that part of the city.

The building originally had seventeen naves, raised on enormous pointed brick arches and arranged perpendicular to the river. Each ship was 100 meters long by 12 meters wide, forming a total area of about 15,000 square meters.

Throughout history, the complex has undergone modifications in its layout and use, adapting to new ship models and the needs of the Navy at all times. Among the most important modifications we can mention the reconditioning of ships 13, 14 and 15 in the 16th century to be used as customs. In the 17th century, the naves between 8 and 12 were removed to install the Hospital de la Caridad.

Part of the Shipyards were used as a storage place for artillery since the 16th century and this purpose would be expanded in the 18th century, since in 1719 the seat of the Royal Artillery Maestranza was decreed in five of the ships.

At present, the Shipyards are undergoing extensive restoration and reform in order to turn them into an immense cultural space.

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WALL OF THE JEWISH QUARTER

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In Fabiola street we find a fragment of the wall barely ten meters long, which constitutes the only visible remains of the Jewish quarter wall that have come down to us. This wall was built in the 13th century to separate the Jewish community of Seville from the rest of the city, surrounding the current neighborhoods of Santa Cruz and San Bartolomé. This fence had a series of gates that were closed at night, trying to guarantee the safety of the Jewish community in the city. However, the monumentality of this wall did not prevent violent episodes, such as the dramatic assault in 1391 that killed hundreds of Seville Jews.

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The fragment that we see here is made of mud and at its base we can see the characteristic millstones inserted, so common in many of the buildings in the neighborhood. Its original purpose was to avoid possible damage caused by the axles of the wheels of the carts, especially on narrow roads like this one.

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REAL DOOR OR GOLES DOOR

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In this space was located one of the gates of the walled enclosure of the city. Today disappeared, only the canvas of the wall that had an annex has come down to us. It was called Puerta de Goles at least since the Christian conquest of the city until the 16th century. It became known as the Royal Gate after Philip II visited Seville in 1570, being the first king to enter the city through this gate. Until then, the monarchs entered the city through the Puerta de la Macarena.

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WALL OF THE CABILDO SQUARE

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We can see here a fragment of about 60 meters of wall, built in the 13th century creating a fortress that was located in this area as part of the complex defensive framework that surrounded the Alcázar and the great mosque at the end of the Islamic period.

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It is built with mud wall and preserves the walkway and the battlements. To the north, a tower has also been preserved, but it is not visible from the part of the Cabildo as it has lost its upper part and is therefore covered behind the wall.

At the exit from the square towards Arfe street, inserted between the residential building, another fragment of the wall can be seen, with the same dating and characteristics.

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GATE OF OIL

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It is one of the few gates of the walled enclosure of the city that have survived to this day. Its original construction has been dated to the Almohad period, probably in the 12th century, and it has been identified with the 'bab al-Qatai' or 'Gate of the Ships', which is mentioned in Muslim sources. This name would come from its proximity to the Almohad shipyards, also built in the 12th century.

The current name already appears in Christian times, in relation to the market and the oil warehouses that were located in the vicinity.
Its current appearance is far from the original and is mostly due to the reform undertaken by Benvenuto Tortello in the 16th century, focused on facilitating vehicle traffic through the shutter.
Also from the 16th century seems to be the monumental shield of Seville that is located on the opening towards the center of the city. It has been attributed to the Renaissance sculptor Juan Bautista Vázquez el Viejo.
Next to the Postigo is the small Chapel of La Pura y Limpia, built in the 18th century. There a small image of the Immaculate attributed to Pedro Roldán is venerated.

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