Plaza de Espana

Located on the grounds of Maria Luisa Park, surrounded by the gorgeous canal is the Plaza de España in Seville, Spain. Built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, the grandiose structure was built to stun the exhibitions visitors in a grand display of their finest craftsmen.

The Plaza was designed by the great Seville architect Aníbal González. The structure was imposed in lavish scale, measuring a total of area of 50,000 square meters making it the most imposing plaza in all of Spain. It is a landmark example of the Regionalism Architecture, mixing elements of the Renaissance Revival and Moorish Revival (Neo-Mudejar) styles of Spanish architecture.

Throughout the structure Aníbal González deliberately created cultural references into the design. At the foot of the building are tiled representations of the 48 provinces of Spain. It is custom for Spanish visitors to take photos at the tiled mosaic that represents their home province. González also created four bridges that cross the canal, each representing a different ancient Kingdom of Spain.

Beautiful detail covers every inch of the Plaza. The porticoed gallery that separates the open space of the Plaza with respect to the buildings boasts an elaborate coffered ceiling that will make anyone’s head tilt up to catch a glimpse. Two tall towers stand at the ends of the Plaza, providing the area with perfect balance. These towers can be seen throughout the city and they are common landmark.

In 2010 the Plaza underwent a 14-million-euro renovation. This included updates to the streetlamps, supplying new benches and new railings surrounding the canal. The work also included a 5-million-euro update to the water supply system of the canal. Today the Plaza mainly consists of government buildings and the central government departments are located within its impressive walls.