Building - Real Casa de la Moneda

Since 1585

The histories that go hand in hand

The history of the Mint is intrinsically linked to the history of Seville and its economic, social, and cultural evolution. The fact that it was a money production centre means that it was directly linked to the changes and fluctuations that the national economy underwent. We must appreciate the importance that its activity represented for Seville and its relations with the American continent.

Coining the present

Far from the nostalgic desire to resurrect what is now long gone, what it seeks above all is to take advantage of the rich historical experience that cities like Seville possess and to tune in with the vital impulses that made it famous both culturally and economically.

The refurbishment work on the buildings that make up the façade of the Real Casa de La Moneda in Seville, located at numbers 3, 5 and 7 of Calle Adolfo Rodríguez Jurado, after a standstill of some 10 years, will be resumed in February 2020 under a new project and project management, so that the new intervention allows these monumental buildings to adapt to their new use as Tourist Apartments, maintaining the original characteristics that have given them their formidable and unique nature, considering the building in all its architectural and artistic aspects.

Although the architectural evolution of the Mint complex was known, the analysis of the structure carried out during the work has brought to light evidence of the four constructive interventions on the estate:

Fragments of the wall, as well as part of the towers which made up the Alcazaba erected in the mid-12th century by the Almoravid and Almohad Muslim governments, which formed part of the defensive system of one of the city’s gates, known as the Alcohol Gate (Bad al Kuh).

Construction of the Casa de la Moneda (Mint) from 1585 by Juan de Minjares.

Renovations carried out in 1761 by Sebastián Van der Borcht in which a new façade was created, the most significant one being the Baroque façade.

Renovations to provide the building with new uses carried out between 1874 and 1894 by Jose Gómez Otero.

“The rehabilitation works have tried to be as respectful as possible with the pre-existing structure, trying to enhance it in order to obtain a better understanding of the building’s past”.

Architect Javier de Bethencourt Enríquez

PHOTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVE

We collaborated with collectors of 19th century photography in Seville.

Connecting with the past is a way of enriching our present. It is important to be aware of it and know how to use it as a moral stimulus for the future project to which we are all committed.

We assume a gesture of solidarity with that past, forging the greatness of a city from which we still benefit today.

‘Exhibition commemorating the 400th Anniversary of the Seville Mint’. Prologue by Manuel del Valle, Mayor of Seville, 1987.

Charles Clifford

The nostalgia that Sevillians often feel for a past they never knew, and which has been documented by notable contemporary writers, finds balm and encouragement in the images captured by the Welsh photographer Charles Clifford in the mid-19th century. The sepia photographs of the extinct city gates, the movement of ships on the docks of the Guadalquivir or the palace houses that seduced the romantic visitors who came to the old Roman Híspalis attracted by the charms of the south, are surprising for their incalculable historical value. Costumbrismo in a picture, a portrait of Seville in 1862.

A. Massari

Alejandro Massari was an Italian photographer (he died 1876) who belonged to the group of foreign photographers who settled in southern Spain during the early years of photography, attracted by the culture and customs of the country. He settled in Seville, where he opened a studio in around 1855. He devoted himself to portraiture and street photography, and worked with the daguerreotype, albumen and salt paper printed from wet collodion negative.

J. Laurent

Jean Laurent y Minier was a French photographer (born in Garchizy, Nevers, on 23 July 1816 and died in Madrid on 24 November 1886) who was considered one of the most important photographers working in Spain in the 19th century. He produced an immense output of panoramic views of cities, landscapes, monuments, public works and works of art on the Iberian Peninsula, as well as portraits of popular personalities.

R. P. Napper

Napper travelled around Spain in the 1860s and took photographs of the Iberian Peninsula working for Francis Frith.2 Most of these images were marketed by Frith's company, with which he broke off in mid-1864 to work independently. When he travelled to Spain, Napper devoted special attention to Andalusia, on which he published the album ‘Views in Andalusia.’ His work on Andalusia corresponds to some of the commissions from the Duke of Montpensier,3 who supported his photography during his stays in Seville

“Memory itself is a form of architecture’”

Louise Bourgeois

How many generations fit into one building? How many families, how many offices, how many glances down a staircase?

In the memory of cities, the soul of a building is written in its pillars. Transforming it into a modern, efficient, and sustainable space–equipped with top-quality design and finishes–is only the beginning of a story whose true protagonists are the people, the essence of a city.

Materials

The refurbishment has been carried out using the original or local materials with the aim of giving identity and roots to the emblematic building, while at the same time providing warmth, quality, and comfort.

Architecture

‘The rehabilitation works have tried to be as respectful as possible with the pre-existing structure, trying to enhance it in order to obtain a better understanding of the building’s past.’

Architect Javier de Bethencourt Enríquez

Equipment

The house and the apartments are equipped with amenities and qualities that provide great comfort and the best experience for its inhabitants.

Decoration

All the original architectural elements have been reproduced, keeping their cultural and anthropological value intact.