Palacio de San Telmo
Palace of San Telmo | |
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Palacio de San Telmo (Spanish) | |
General information | |
Architectural style | Spanish Baroque |
Location | Seville, Spain |
Design and construction | |
Architect(s) | Leonardo de Figueroa |
Official name | Palacio de San Telmo con el Jardín contiguo al mismo |
Type | Non-movable |
Criteria | Monument |
Designated | 6 April 1968 |
Reference no. | RI-51-0007309 |
The Palace of San Telmo (
Description
The palace is one of the emblematic buildings of Sevillian Baroque architecture. It is built on a rectangular plan, with several interior courtyards, including a central courtyard, towers on the four corners, a chapel, and gardens. The exuberantly baroque chapel, accessed from one of the courtyards, is the work of architect Leonardo de Figueroa; among those involved in its decoration were sculptor Pedro Duque y Cornejo, stonecutter Miguel de Quintana, painter Domingo Martínez, and carpenter Juan Tomás Díaz. Presiding over the chapel is an early 17th-century statue of Nuestra Señora del Buen Aire ("Our Lady of Good Air").
Exterior
The main façade of the palace is distinguished by the magnificent Churrigueresque entrance completed in 1754, the work of other members of the Figueroa family, specifically Matías and Antonio Matías, son and grandson of Leonardo de Figueroa, at a cost of 50,000 pesos. The entryway consists of several parts. The door is flanked by three columns on each side. Over the door is a balcony supported by Atlantes (supports sculpted in the form of a man); twelve allegorical female figures represent the nautical arts and sciences. Finally, there is a sculptural grouping with columns and a figure of Peter González, Saint Telmo (or Elmo), patron saint of sailors, flanked by the patron saints of the city: Saint Ferdinand (Ferdinand III of Castile) and Saint Hermenegild.
Atop the façade facing Calle Palos de la Frontera, across from the Hotel Alfonso XIII, are sculptures of twelve illustrious Sevillians, sculpted in 1895 by Antonio Susillo. The twelve figures are:
- Juan Martínez Montañés, sculptor.
- Rodrigo Ponce de León, Marquess of Cádiz and Captain General of the Reconquista of Granada.
- Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez, painter.
- Miguel Mañara, Knight and philanthropist, founder of Seville's Hospital de la Caridad.
- Lope de Rueda, writer.
- Fernando de Herrera, poet.
- Luis Daoíz, military officer, hero of the Spanish War of Independence (Peninsular War).
- Benito Arias Montano, humanist.
- Bartolomé Esteban Murillo, painter.
- Fernando Afán de Ribera y Enríquez, Duke of Alcalá, humanist.
- Bartolomé de las Casas, monk, bishop of Chiapas, Mexico and protector of the Indians.
Three of these were Sevillians "by adoption", born elsewhere, but who lived and died in Seville: Benito Arias Montano was born in
History
On 10 March 1682 construction began on the building, dedicated to the University of Navigators (Universidad de Mareantes), an institution that later was called Colegio de Marina and then Colegio de Naútica, a role in which it continued until 1847. Thereafter, the building had a number of uses. First, briefly, it was the headquarters of the Railway Society (Sociedad del Ferrocarril, dedicated to the development of Spain's then nascent railways) and site of the Literary University (Universidad Literaria), but was underutilized and these groups could not afford the upkeep. In 1849 it was bought by
In 1901, while
Rehabilitation
Work began in 1991 to convert the building for use as the official seat of the presidency of the Andalusian Autonomous Government. In 2005, a second phase of restoration took place. It focused on restoring the parts of the 18th and 19th centuries and reforming elements of low architectural value and poor quality of materials made in the 20th century by Basterra y Sagastizábal.[4]
References
- ^ Antonio Sancho Corbacho (1952), Arquitectura barroca sevillana del siglo XVIII, Madrid: Instituto Diego Velázquez. Superior Council of Scientific Research, p. 68 and following
- ^ https://www.lasnoticiasdesevilla.com/
- ^ "Costurero de la Reina de Sevilla, España". Fotografías de Sevilla, España. Retrieved 2011-11-09.
- ^ Margot Molina (4 March 2007), San Telmo, un palacio en busca de su dignidad, El País
- Falcon Márquez, Teodoro (1991). El Palacio de San Telmo. Seville: Gever. ISBN 84-7566-024-X
- Ribelot, Alberto (2001). Vida azarosa del Palacio de San Telmo: su historia y administración eclesiástica. Seville: Marsay. ISBN 84-95539-25-X
- Vázquez Soto, José María; Vázquez Consuegra, Guillermo & Torres Vela, Javier (1990). San Telmo, biografía de un palacio. Seville: Consejería de Cultura.
External links
- (in Spanish) Informe sobre los valores patrimoniales del Palacio de San Telmo de Sevilla, Instituto Andaluz del Patrimonio Histórico