Tag Archives: XVI

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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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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RENAISSANCE TONDOS OF JARDÍN DE LAS DELICIAS

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Next to one of the fountains of the Jardines de las Delicias, a series of four joined brick walls was arranged in the 2007 reform, forming a series of three benches. On them were placed four Renaissance tondos, originally made for the Plateresque façade of the Seville City Hall. They were removed from their original location in a restoration undertaken in the 19th century and replaced by others that imitate the Plateresque style.

One of the originals that we see today in the park represents Julius Caesar or Achilles, it is not known for sure. Another represents Hercules and the other two Carlos V and Isabella of Portugal, who celebrated their wedding in Seville at the time of the construction of the City Hall façade.

Despite their enormous deterioration, they are pieces of great historical value for the city. Unfortunately, their current location makes them easy targets for vandalism.

The tondos are located today in front of a marble fountain with a mixtilinear plan surrounded by a mosaic of enchinado.

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