To the origins
The site of Antequera is home to one of the largest megalithic complexes in the world. The Menga and Viera dolmens (a monument consisting of a roof slab supported by pillars that form the walls of a burial chamber) and the El Romeral tholos (a circular, corbelled vaulted burial site) can be found here. The Dolmen de la Creu d'en Corbetella, located on the megalithic route, is one of the largest prehistoric buildings in Catalonia. This amazing structure originally led to a corridor burial. In Asturias, as in Galicia, you can discover the very elaborate architecture of the first Celtic villages: the castros. Grouping several circular houses, they were protected by powerful and massive enclosures, like the Castro de Coaňa, already divided into streets and having an ingenious water drainage system. A sophistication found among the Iberians, a people still unknown, but who nevertheless left in the historic site of Ullastret incredible remains of streets, houses, cisterns, silos, and a powerful wall composed of round and square towers. A mastery of architecture that is found in the Greeks and Romans. The site of Empuries, unique in its kind, houses ramparts, agora and Greek sanctuaries, as well as forum, baths and Roman villas. The aqueduct of Segovia with its 166 arches built on two levels, the enclosure of Lugo with its 6 m width and 11 m height or the Triumphal Arch of Medinaceli (which has become a symbol of ancient sites on road signs!) are among the masterpieces of Roman pragmatism and monumentalism. But the ancient sites not to be missed are those of Merida and Tarragona in Extremadura. Merida was an idealized replica of Imperial Rome with its well thought-out urban planning, its impressive water management (dams, dykes, aqueducts, sewers), its sumptuous theaters, amphitheaters and granite temples and its villas with delicate mosaics. Tarragona is a masterpiece of urban planning, with three terraces representing religious power, political power and leisure. This ensemble, which combines topography and function, is protected by impressive walls. After the Romans, it was the Visigoths who left their mark on Spain. Artisans of an embryonic Christian art, the Visigoths excelled in the art of goldsmithing and ornamentation. Their buildings are recognizable by their massive walls and horseshoe arches. The Hermitage of Quintanilla de las Viňas with its stylized capitals is a beautiful example.
Splendors of Islam
During the Caliphate of Cordoba (8th-10th century), the noblest materials (ashlar, marble) were used alongside the most sophisticated decorative effects: horseshoe arches (inherited from the Visigoths), alfizs or rectangular moldings framing the arches, geometric and floral motifs, mosaics with iridescent reflections, calligraphic inscriptions... It is from this period that the Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba dates with its richly decorated mihrab (niche pointing to Mecca) and especially its incredible forest of columns made of jasper, granite and marble. At the same time, Moorish architecture was also defensive with the construction of powerful fortresses, with irregular stonework, protected by double enclosures punctuated by towers and monumental doors. TheAlcazaba of Malaga is a superb example of this, as is the original silhouette of the Royal Alcazares
of Seville with their crenellated towers and merlons.During the Taifa kingdom (11th century), the materials used were less noble: brick, plaster and mortar. But these materials did not prevent a rich ornamentation made of vegetal, geometrical or calligraphic motifs. The cities develop in a maze of narrow streets lined with low whitewashed houses, with flat roofs and almost blind facades. The Pueblos Blancos of Andalusia, with their fortified silhouette and their houses covered with a white whitewash reflecting light and heat and decorated with very few and very deep openings, are the direct heirs. In these Hispanic medinas, like the Albaicin district in Granada, an astonishing architecture of water was also developed, as shown by the beautiful baths of Granada, El Banuelo, with their small openings in the form of a star. During the Almoravid period (12th century), the arches, which were no longer supporting elements but purely decorative elements, became more and more complex. The domes and cupolas are openwork with geometric patterns always more sought after or decorated with ceilings called muqarnas or stalactites. The mihrab of the mosque of Almeria is the heir. The Almohads (13th century) sought more simplicity in a monumental and defensive architecture with great purity of lines. In Seville, the Torre del Oro, which takes its name from the azulejos that decorated it, and the Giralda
, a square tower lined with brick ornaments whose repetitive diamond-shaped pattern is called sebka, are the proud representatives. But the richest and most astonishing period was that of the Nasrids (13th-14th). The azulejos with bright colors and geometric patterns respond to the columns and capitals of colored marble and polychrome wood of the rich coffered ceilings. All the areas on display have an incredibly rich ornamental treatment that demonstrates the amazing properties of stucco (plaster mixed with marble powder). TheAlhambra of Granada is the most beautiful witness of this period and the unique refinement of its palatial architecture. The Generalife, the summer residence of the Nasrid rulers, designed to be "the garden of the supreme paradise" is one of the most beautiful illustrations of the importance given to nature and especially to water by the Arabs. Water purifies, refreshes and enlarges the space thanks to the clever play of reflections, which explains the presence of fountains and pools in the heart of the patios. Alongside this Islamic art, a syncretic art was developed by Christian craftsmen: Mozarabic art, which borrowed from the Visigothic (horseshoe arch), Islamic (ribbed domes, decorative motifs) and Christian (basilica or Latin cross plan, apses...) traditions. The church of Santiago de Penalba, with its Latin cross plan, its Corinthian columns and its vaults with the appearance of domes, is the perfect example.Architecture of the Reconquest
It all starts in Asturias, a small kingdom that never knew the Arab domination, and where a unique pre-Romanesque art developed, especially in Oviedo. Don't miss the church of Santa Maria del Naranco, which is still very much influenced by Visigothic art and has typical Asturian features, such as its rope-like columns. From the 11th century onwards, the Romanesque style took off, especially in Catalonia, and more specifically in the Vall de Boi, as shown by the churches of Santa Maria and San Climent de Taüll. These buildings bear the mark of Lombard Romanesque, which can be seen in the simplicity of the plan, the sobriety of the volumes, the blind arcatures, the round arches, the art of the frescoes and above all in the square-plan tower-cochers decorated with protruding motifs such as the Lombard band. Avila, known as "the city of saints and stones" is a fine representative of this Reconquest novel. At the foot of its astonishing fortifications with 82 semicircular towers and 9 monumental gates, a series of churches of great Romanesque purity unfolds. A sobriety pushed to the extreme in the great Cistercian monastic complexes mixing spirituality and functionality. The most famous is the Monastery of Poblet, with its chapter house with vaults supported by slender columns and its cloister lined with arcades with stylized columns, making an elegant transition to Gothic. The cathedral of Barcelona, with its 26-meter high nave, the cathedral of Seville, with its star-shaped vault and its fasciculated pillars (made up of five columns stuck together), the cathedral of Leon, illuminated by no less than 1,800m2 of stained glass windows, and the cathedral of Burgos, with its high chiseled spires, are superb representatives of a Gothic style that became flamboyant. A style that will find its apogee in the Isabeline style. The latter is the art of the Reconquest par excellence. The kings asserted their power with coats of arms and heraldic symbols, while using a consummate art of decoration multiplying free forms, curves and chiseled ornaments inspired by the discoveries of the New World. The Monastery of San Juan de los Reyes in Toledo and the House of Shells(Casade las Conchas) in Salamanca are two very fine examples
Where Romanesque was primarily religious, Gothic art became urban. The bourgeois and merchant elites provided the necessary capital to build the new landmarks of the city: the town hall(ayuntamiento) and the stock exchange (llotja). Barcelona's Barri Gotic, the largest Gothic district in Europe, is full of these treasures. But the proudest representative of this urban Gothic style is the Lonja de la Seda in Valencia, a monumental commercial complex dedicated to the silk trade, most of which is occupied by the Sala de Contratacion, with its polychrome marble floor and ribbed vaults resting on slender spiral columns nearly 16 meters high
Although the Christians gradually reconquered the peninsula, they did not drive out the Moorish artists and craftsmen. Impressed by the refinement of their architecture, they called upon them to build churches, palaces and castles. This was the advent of the Mudejar style. The latter remains faithful to the Islamic tradition in the materials (plaster, brick, wood), construction techniques (horseshoe arch, pointed arch, wooden ceilings, alfiz) and especially in the decorative elements (geometric motifs, coffered ceilings, stucco, glazed ceramics), while integrating Gothic elements (slender spires, heraldic motifs...). In Aragon, especially in Teruel and Zaragoza, there are dozens of examples of this style. Don't miss the beautiful tower and impressive ribbed dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria de Mediavilla in Teruel. The Royal Monastery of Santa Maria de Guadalupe, with its cloister in the traditional red-brick/white-lime bichromy of Islamic architecture, is another fine example of this style. A bichromy that can be found in the powerful Coca Castle, which belongs to the fortresses that populate the Castilian landscape. The Alcazar of Seville, the Castle of Belmonte or the Castle of La Mota, for their part, combine watchtowers, barbicans and machicolations with gilded coffered ceilings, horseshoe arches and Mudéjar sculpted decorations. In the region of El Maestrat, which owes its name to the masters, the Templar masters who built powerful fortresses there, you can also discover beautiful examples of medieval towns, such as Morella, which, sheltered by its fortified walls, has a typically medieval urban layout made up of a labyrinthine network of narrow streets, vaulted passageways, flights of stairs and plazas lined with shopping arcades and beautiful emblazoned houses
From the Renaissance to Classicism
A decorative art of Italian inspiration, the Plateresque Renaissance gives pride of place to scrolls, arabesques, garlands and delicate filigree reliefs reminiscent of the precision work of the goldsmith or platero. The Hostal de San Marcos in León, with its medallions and sculpted columns and arches, is one of the most beautiful plateresque buildings in Spain, as is the façade of the University of Salamanca and especially that of the Convent of San Esteban with its friezes, medallions and grotesques adorning triumphal arches, niches and consoles. The city of Baeza also has superb examples of this highly decorative style, such as the Casa del Populo and the sculpted decorations of its town hall. Its neighbor, Ubeda, made a transition to a more sober second Renaissance. The city bears the mark of Andrés de Vandelvira, famous for his delicate work with stone and his decorations reduced to their simplest expression. Pure and harmonious forms that are found in what is called Renaissance classicism carried by the architect Juan de Herrera. It is to him that Philip II of Habsburg entrusts the continuation of the work of the famous Palace of El Escorial, which enthrones a new style, the desornamentado, all in sobriety and simplicity. A sobriety that can be found in the first Baroque buildings, of which beautiful examples can be admired around the Plaza Mayor of Madrid, itself redesigned to get out of the tortuous pattern of the medieval city. The City Hall and the current Ministry of Foreign Affairs are all built with slate roofs and harmonious brick facades
Then, gradually, the decorative elements became more elaborate. Alonso Cano, architect, sculptor and painter, is one of the great representatives of this second Baroque. He is responsible for the superb main façade of the Cathedral of Granada. But the most impressive and the most abundant of the baroque is the one of the third period called Churrigueresque, from the name of the Churriguera, great dynasty of architects. An art of staging and visual effects, this baroque multiplies twisted columns, pilasters in inverted pyramids, finely chiseled altarpieces, interlacing and geometric forms, stucco and gilding in abundance. The main façade of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, conceived as an immense altarpiece, is the most incredible example
The Habsburgs were succeeded by the Bourbons who built new palaces mixing Spanish baroque and French rococo. This splendor is reminiscent of the Palace of Versailles, which served as a model for the superb Palace of Aranjuez and its immense French gardens, and for the impressive Granja Palace with its superb play of colors created by the juxtaposition of pink stone, gray marble and white stone in the façade. Then, from 1752, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, which had just been created, took the opposite view of this decorative profusion by advocating order and moderation and thus opening the way to classical lines. The Royal Palace in Madrid is the great representative of this newfound sobriety. But it was under the influence of the king builder Charles III and the architect Ventura Rodriguez that the city underwent its greatest transformations. Together, they designed the Paseo del Prado, "the green promenade of art", in the form of a hippodrome and punctuated with superb fountains, to which were added the botanical garden and the astronomical observatory, a model of simplicity and simplicity that was designed by the most famous representative of neoclassicism: Juan de Villanueva
Historicism and Modernity
Alongside the neoclassical style, a new architectural trend based on a romanticism that drew on the sources of all past styles developed. In Andalusia, the fashion was neo-Mudejar, as shown by the Palacio de Orleans y Borbon in Sanlucar de Barrameda. In the north of the country, the Indianos, the Spaniards who returned from South America, built sumptuous houses that mixed past styles (Gothic turrets, Mudejar patios, plateresque lacework and Baroque decorations) with modernity, with beautiful balconies and glass windows in metal and wrought iron. Metal architecture can be found in civil engineering feats such as the Puente Internacional de Tui by Gustave Eiffel, or the Vizcaya Bridge in Bilbao, the first bridge in the world with a suspended transfer pod. A Coruña owes its nickname of "city of crystal" to the galerias or glass bow windows that adorn its facades. They are also called acristoladas
facades. Between neo style and glass and metal architecture, the casinos are also the great representatives of this architectural effervescence, like the Casinos of Murcia and Santander. But the most astonishing examples of this mix are to be seen in Seville. As early as 1909, the city of Seville was preparing to host a major event: the Spanish-American Exposition of 1929. In 1901, the Estacion de Plaza de Armas was given a new façade that combined the bricks and ceramics of neo-Mudejar architecture with the glass and iron of industrial architecture. The Casino de la Exposición, with its façade decorated with pilasters and plaster moldings, is a fine example of neo-baroque, while the monumental palace of the Plaza de España is inspired by the forms of the Plateresque Renaissance. The Estacion del Norte and the Central Market of Valencia bear the mark of a modernism of glass and steel, tinged with Art Nouveau as evidenced by their ceramic decorations. An Art Nouveau that would take a very singular form in Catalonia: that of Modernism.As part of the Renaixença movement or rebirth of the Catalan identity, it advocates a return to the origins of a glorious past, drawing on medieval sources of the art of decoration and craftsmanship, while drawing inspiration from nature and its organic forms, giving free rein to an astonishing formal freedom. Puig i Cadafalch and his voluptuous curved creations is a great representative of this. In Barcelona, Antoni Gaudí pushes even further this formal freedom by inventing an architecture-sculpture with facades with curved volumes and animated with iridescent ceramic tesserae. The Parc Guëll with its strange troglodyte-like paths, the Casa Mila buildings with their astonishing ridges, and of course the Sagrada Familia
with its twisting, clerestory spires before bursting into floral crosses are the great witnesses of this inimitable style. The turn of the 20th century was also a period of great urban renewal. In Barcelona, Ildefonso Cerdà decided to tear down the walls and extend the city according to a grid plan. This was the birth of the Eixample ("extension") district. In Madrid, the Gran Via was newly opened. The Belle Epoque buildings were soon followed by the witnesses of the emerging modernism. The 88-meter-high building of the Telefonica Company was the first skyscraper in the city. Its neighbors were inspired by the rationalist style that was also found in one of the key buildings of the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona: the German Pavilion by Mies Van der Rohe, with its clean lines and elegant play of light. A creative effervescence that was to be stopped by Francoism. Like all authoritarian regimes, Francoism advocated monumental architecture that combined historicism and rationalist accents. Madrid was thus equipped with triumphal arches and the buildings erected at the time all seemed to be modelled on the gigantic Escorial. But the folly of Franco's grandeur is most evident in the Valle de los Caidos, a monument with a basilica 245 meters deep carved into the rock and topped by a 150-meter high cross; and the La Laboral University of Gijon, whose 270,000 square meters house one of the largest elliptical churches in the world.Contemporary effervescence
In the 80's, the cultural revolution of the Movida made Madrid pass from Franco's regime to postmodernism, from rigorism to hedonism, giving the city a very "American" architecture, all glass, concrete and steel. This effervescence continued in the 1990s with the construction of the most famous buildings in the city, the Torres Kio, forming the Puerta de Europa. These 115 m high towers have an inclination of 15 degrees and seem to defy the laws of gravity! The 90s were also key years for Barcelona and Seville, which respectively hosted the Olympic Games and the Universal Exhibition and were transformed into real architectural laboratories. In Seville, the Puente del Alamillo, built for the occasion, is the work of Santiago Calatrava, famous for mixing functional engineering aesthetics and architectural sculpture, while favoring curved and organic forms. Bridges are among his most emblematic works, such as the Pasarela de Uribitarte in Bilbao and the Lusitania Bridge in Mérida. He was also responsible for most of the buildings of the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia, the new Bilbao airport terminal, which resembles the flight of a dove, and the Obelisk of the Madrid Cashier's Office, a slender cylinder 92 meters high. Another central figure in Spanish architecture is Rafael Moneo, who was awarded the Pritzker Prize (the Nobel Prize for Architecture) for his work, which elegantly combines minimalism and monumentalism. Among his most beautiful works are: the National Museum of Roman Art in Merida, whose arches in the main hall echo the height and style of the arches of the Los Milagros aqueduct; the Atocha train station in Madrid, with its canopy and clock tower; and the sober interior design of the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum. This sobriety is the opposite of the motifs found in Ricardo Bofill's work. A postmodernist architect, he rejects functionalism and multiplies ancient references, as with the National Theater of Catalonia, a veritable Greek temple flanked by 26 columns. We also owe him the Dama del Manzanares, a bronze and steel sculpture resting on a 21 m high pyramidal platform overlooking Madrid. A concrete architecture that has caused much debate... unlike that of RCR Arquitectes. Based in the small Catalan city of Olot, the agency has developed unique projects that combine simplicity, unity and timeless poetry... which earned it the Pritzker Prize in 2017! But Spain also knows how to welcome the biggest names in international architecture to reinvent itself. In Santander, Renzo Piano is responsible for the Centro Botin, whose two buildings seem to be suspended in the air. The iconic Museo Guggenheim, Bilbao's flower of glass, steel and limestone, is the work of the famous Frank Gehry. In Barcelona, it's impossible to miss Jean Nouvel's Torre Glories, a 145-meter-high glass dome with curved, slender forms. The Catalan city is also home to Arata Isozaki's Palau Sant Jordi and Herzog & de Meuron's Edifici Forum with its bright blue geometric volumes. The Swiss architects also designed the CaixaForum in Madrid, a former industrial power plant that has been rehabilitated and features Spain's very first vertical garden. Another flagship space in the capital is the Cuatro Torres Business Area, the City of Madrid, with towers designed by Norman Foster and César Pelli. The Argentine architect caused a scandal in Seville with his Torre de Sevilla. With an elliptical base and a height of 180 meters, the tower attracts the eye with its terracotta-colored aluminum cladding... which prevented the historic heart of the city from being declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The municipality decided to ban the construction of new skyscrapers. A lesson that some over-concreted cities on the coast should learn from!
Vernacular riches
Andalusia, and especially the region of Almeria, are limestone areas conducive to cave dwellings, whose presence can be identified by the smooth, whitewashed chimneys. In the neighborhood of La Chanca in Almeria, the facades of these "caves" are brightly colored. In Castilla y León, as in the Basque Country, you can admire beautiful half-timbered houses, often beautifully colored. Their stone base to protect them from humidity, as well as their overhanging roofs protecting porches and balconies, and especially their red tile roofs, are remarkable. In the northwestern regions, you can discover a unique small heritage made up ofhorreos, traditional granaries built on stilts, made of stone in Galicia and often made of wood with a thatched and slate roof in Asturias; teitos, old houses made of dry stone and thatched roofs used as shelters for people and animals; as well as pallozas, circular huts with thatched roofs and low walls. In Castilla-La Mancha, in the Parque Nacional de Cabaneros, you can also discover chozos, shepherds' shelters of conical shape, with only one entrance and resembling a kind of thatched tepee. The region is also rich in windmills, such as those of Consuegra and Campo de Criptana, which dominate the landscape from their rocky ridges. And these are only a few examples of a small heritage that also makes the richness of the country!
