This is a slightly different post than those describing my visits to other Spanish cities. Sevilla (Spanish) / Seville (English) is a city with a rich heritage of major landmarks, three of which are on UNESCO's World Heritage List. The city is clearly swamped by 2 million plus tourists in a typical year - this in a city of just over 700,000 people.

In this unusual year, however, tourism has been reduced to a trickle. As a result, the experience - not to mention the extraordinary buildings - is quite a special one. In the last week of October, I walked and taxied back and forth across the city, almost alone in my pursuit of these and other monuments and the city at large. Hundreds of photos later, I saw I had a story to tell first about just four places.

What follows is that: a visual story - with a bit more text than usual - about two of the World Heritage sites and two other places that, undoubtedly, will become a Heritage site in give or take fifty years.

In another blog to follow at a later date, I have a different and more typical (for me) take on the rest of the city, its streets and spaces; its museums and arte callejero (street art); the newer architecture on the city's Isle de la Cartuga, including the site of the Universal Exposition of Seville (Expo '92); and perhaps even a few more people - clearly residents - taking advantage of their suddenly, seemingly empty city.

The World Heritage Background

As of June 2020, a total of 1,121 World Heritage List sites (869 cultural, 213 natural, and 39 mixed properties) exist across 167 countries; the three countries with most sites are China, Italy (both 55) and Spain (48). Three of these are in Sevilla: the Cathedral, the Alcazar, and the Archivo De Indias.

"Outstanding Universal Value"

Brief synthesis
Together the Cathedral, Alcázar and Archivo de Indias as a series, form a remarkable monumental complex in the heart of Seville. They perfectly epitomize the Spanish "Golden Age", incorporating vestiges of Islamic culture, centuries of ecclesiastical power, royal sovereignty and the trading power that Spain acquired through its colonies in the New World.
Founded in 1403 on the site of a former mosque, the Cathedral, built in Gothic and Renaissance style, covers seven centuries of history. With its five naves it is the largest Gothic building in Europe. Its bell tower, the Giralda, was the former minaret of the mosque, a masterpiece of Almohad architecture and now is important example of the cultural syncretism thanks to the top section of the tower, designed in the Renaissance period by Hernán Ruiz. Its "chapter house" is the first known example of the use of the elliptical floor plan in the western world. Ever since its creation, the Cathedral has continued to be used for religious purposes.
The original nucleus of the Alcázar was constructed in the 10th century as the palace of the Moslem governor, and is used even today as the Spanish royal family's residence in this city, thereby retaining the same purpose for which it was originally intended: as a residence of monarchs and heads of state. Built and rebuilt from the early Middle Ages right up to our times, it consists of a group of palatial buildings and extensive gardens. The Alcázar embraces a rare compendium of cultures where areas of the original Almohad palace - such as the "Patio del Yeso" or the "Jardines del Crucero" - coexist with the Palacio de Pedro I representing Spanish Mudejar art, together with other constructions displaying every cultural style from the Renaissance to the Neoclassical.
Authenticity
Each of the three buildings reflects clearly its architectural histories and convey their roles in the Spanish "Golden Age" in terms of ecclesiastical power royal sovereignty and the trading power that Spain acquired through its colonies in the New World.

(https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/383/)

Real Alcázar de Sevilla

The Royal Alcazar of Seville (Real Alcázar de Sevilla) is a complex composed of several palaces and a vast area of perfectly manicured gardens. The highlight is the Palacio del Rey Don Pedro which stands out as being the most beautiful example of Mudéjar architecture in the world.

The buildings feature and interesting mixture of Islamic, Mudéjar, Gothic and Renaissance architectural styles – the result of the Alcazar’s evolution throughout the centuries. The palaces are surrounded by the marvelous Murillo Gardens where the scent of roses and orange trees waft through the air.

The Alcazar’s history began in the 10th century when the Muslim Umayyad dynasty built a fortress (alcazaba) with a palace (al-qasr or alcazar) and a fortified wall. In the 11th and 12th centuries the Abbadid and Almohad dynasties expanded the fortifications. However, in 1248 the fortifications were not enough to keep out the Christian army who reconquered Seville.

A few years later, King Alfonso X ordered the construction of a gothic palace, part of which is still used today as the official residence of the king in the city. It is the oldest royal palace still in use in all of Europe.

In 1356, Seville was struck by a large earthquake that damaged much of the city and left some of the Alcazar in a bad state. King Peter I (Peter the Cruel) had three Almohad palaces demolished and then set out to build his own lavish abode. His Palacio del Rey Don Pedro was constructed with Moorish workers mimicking their own Muslim style but also incorporating some elements of western Christianity.

(https://www.espanaguide.com/seville/alcazar/)

And, if these photographs seem somewhat familiar it is perhaps because besides appearing in the 5th and 6th seasons of Game of Thrones, the Alcazar has also appeared in Lawrence of Arabia, Kingdom of Heaven; The Wind and the Lion; etc., etc.

The Palace normally receives over 700,000 tourists per year. Interestingly, 70% of these visitors are from Spain itself. As late as a couple of years ago, there was a typical 1.5 hour wait to enter if you did not have advance tickets. The palace then instituted a maximum occupancy limited to 750 tourists per hour with entry only by pre-paid tickets.

The site was, of course, closed at the start of the pandemic, but re-opened on June 15 with a new limit of 250 visitors per hour. The afternoon I visited, I bought a ticket online at the door, was admitted immediately, and joined perhaps 50-60 people total wandering through the vast complex. It was marvelous.

Catedral

The Cathedral of Saint Mary of the See (Spanish: Catedral de Santa María de la Sede), better known as Seville Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Seville, Andalusia, Spain...It is the fourth-largest church in the world (its size remains a matter of debate) as well as the largest Gothic church. (It is also the largest cathedral, period, in Spain.)

After its completion in the early 16th century, Seville Cathedral supplanted Hagia Sophia as the largest cathedral in the world, a title the Byzantine church had held for nearly a thousand years. The total area occupied by the building is 11,520 square metres (124,000 sq ft). The Gothic section alone has a length of 126 m (413 ft), a width of 76 m (249 ft), and its maximum height in the center of the transept is 42 m (138 ft). The total height of the Giralda tower from the ground to the weather vane is 104.5 m (342 ft 10 in).

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The interior has the longest nave of any cathedral in Spain. The central nave rises to a height of 42 m (138 ft). In the main body of the cathedral, the most noticeable features are the great boxlike choir loft, which fills the central portion of the nave, and the vast Gothic retablo of carved scenes from the life of Christ. This altarpiece was the lifetime work of a single craftsman, Pierre Dancart.

The builders preserved some elements from the ancient mosque. The mosque's sahn, that is, the courtyard for ablutions for the faithful to conduct their ritual cleansing before entering the prayer hall is known today as the Patio de los Naranjos. It contains a fountain and orange trees. However, the most well known is its minaret, which was converted into a bell tower known as La Giralda. and is now the city's most well-known symbol. (See below.)

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seville_Cathedral)

I read that there are 3,391 Catholic cathedrals in the world, 88 of which are in Spain. They are a major component of architectural history and over my lifetime I have visited dozens (hundreds?) of them. Again, walking straight in through a waiting corridor that resembles an airport security line, I am not sure what I was expecting, but the reality is staggering. This is one big church. Let me qualify that. This is one big, gloriously detailed, church. Perhaps, the fact that it was essentially empty when I visited made the experience that much more dramatic.

I also read that the cathedral has 80 chapels. It was reported in 1896 that 500 masses were said daily in the chapels. I am not sure what to say about that. Hopefully, those attending spent some quality time studying and appreciating the architecture.

(Christopher Columbus' crypt.)

The Giralda

(Photo by others.)

The Giralda is the bell tower of the Cathedral of Seville. Its height is 105 m (343 ft) and its square base is 7.0 m (23 ft) above sea level and 13 m (44 ft) long per side. The Giralda is the former minaret of the mosque that stood on the site under Muslim rule, and was built to resemble the minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque in Marrakech, Morocco. It was converted into a bell tower for the cathedral after the Reconquista, although the topmost section dates from the Renaissance.

The tower ... was one of the most important symbols in the medieval city. Construction began in 1184 under the direction of architect Ben Ahmad Baso. According to the chronicler Ibn Sahib al-Salah, the works were completed on 10 March 1198, with the placement of four gilt bronze balls in the top section of the tower. After a strong earthquake in 1365, the spheres were missing. In the 16th century the belfry was added by the architect Hernan Ruiz the Younger; the statue on its top, called "El Giraldillo", was installed in 1568 to represent the triumph of the Christian faith.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seville_Cathedral)

Plaza de España

The Plaza de España (Spain Square) is a plaza in the Parque de María Luisa (Maira Luisa Park). It was built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929. It is a landmark example of Regionalism (and Art Deco) Architecture, mixing elements of the (Spanish) Baroque Revival, (Spanish) Renaissance Revival and Moorish Revival (Neo-Mudejar) styles of architecture.

Designed by Aníbal González, it was a principal building built on the Park's edge to showcase Spain's industry and technology exhibits. The Plaza de Espana complex is a huge half-circle; the buildings are accessible by four bridges over the moat, which represent the ancient kingdoms of Spain. In the centre is the Vicente Traver fountain. Many tiled alcoves were built around the plaza, each representing a different province of Spain

Today the buildings of the Plaza de España have been renovated and adapted for use as offices for government agencies. The central government departments, with sensitive adaptive redesign, are located within it.

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From 2007 to 2010, the Seville City Council invested 9 million euros in the restoration of the Plaza de España. The objective was to recover the original monument as the architect, Aníbal González, conceived it. To restore it, the restoration team worked to recover pieces such as the ceramic streetlights, benches, and even pavements. In other cases, they created reproductions of elements based on photographs and postcards from the municipal newspaper library.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_de_Espa%C3%B1a,_Seville)

A note on the scale of the place: It is enormous. Just to give you a sense, the structure measures nearly 46,000 m2 (495,00 sq. ft.). The canal itself that curves around the front of this megalith and its plaza is 515m (1670 ft.) in length. That is approximately the length of 5.5 (American) football fields.

(The Valencia counterpart is much, much less gracious.)

Metropol Parasol

"Metropol Parasol is a wooden structure located at La Encarnacion square, in the old quarter of Seville. It was designed by the German architect whose firm is called J. Mayer H. (reflecting his name, Jürgen Hermann Mayer) and completed in April 2011. It has dimensions of 150 by 70 metres (490 by 230 ft) and an approximate height of 26 metres (85 ft) and claims to be the largest wooden structure in the world. Its appearance, location, delays and cost overruns in construction resulted in much public controversy. The building is popularly known as Las Setas de la Encarnación (Incarnation's mushrooms).

The structure consists of six parasols in the form of giant mushrooms (Las setas in Spanish), whose design is (said to be) inspired by the vaults of the Cathedral of Seville and the ficus trees in the nearby Plaza de Cristo de Burgos. Metropol Parasol is organized in four levels. The underground level (Level 0) houses the Antiquarium, where Roman and Moorish remains discovered on site are displayed in a museum. Level 1 (street level) is the Central Market. The roof of Level 1 is the surface of the open-air public plaza, shaded by the wooden parasols above and designed for public events. Levels 2 and 3 are the two stages of the panoramic terraces (including a restaurant), offering one of the best views of the city centre."

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropol_Parasol)

This is clearly one f**king tour-de-force of architectural sculpture that can be found on the face of the earth. In terms of place-making, it also clearly rivals some of the most historic built sites – both ancient and more modern - around the world. That it should have found a home in only the fourth largest city in Spain is somewhat inexplicable. It is also a mess in terms of program and layout.

Trying to be all things to all people, its multiple uses essentially creates a bulky box-like platform (food market and cafes notwithstanding) that walls off the structure to the existing surrounding square. Uninspired massive concrete staircases front and back deliver you to the new plaza at the second level. Unfortunately, the new elevated “plaza” was closed off both times, days apart, when I visited.

Regardless, any staircase would have to be very special to entice people to attempt to re-create the same experience of a bustling ground-level urban plaza on what is essentially an isolated deck. To confuse things even further, the entrance to access and tickets for the roof-top promenade is tucked away in a gloomy entrance in the basement, albeit next to the new archeological museum.

All of this can almost be forgiven for the glorious juxtaposition of the giant sculpture against the backdrop of an otherwise typical European square, but more importantly, for the roof-top experience. It is part playground, part urban history lesson, part, an almost ethereal sense of walking in the sky that is reinforced by its undulating path and its positioning above the surrounding roof lines. For me, it was a truly unique architectural experience – and you know that is saying a lot coming from me.

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(Contextual photo and drawings from the internet.)

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Stairway to heaven: A cautionary tale.

At night, the lit Parasol takes on yet another persona, this time even more sculptural if that were possible, against the negative space of the black background. This is further reinforced by the blue accent lighting that places a different emphasis to the overall structure, creating new, additional sculptural effects. The rooftop experience also has a much different effect. No longer hovering in the sky as such, you are wrapped in artificial light that creates yet another dimension of floating in space.