Plaza de Espana (Spain Square), Seville (must see)

Spain Square is one of Seville’s most recognisable landmarks and a bold expression of the city’s early 20th-century ambitions. Local tradition likes to claim that Seville was founded by Hercules—though, as often noted, he could not be reached for verification. Since then, waves of Carthaginians, Romans, Goths, Vandals, and Moors have passed through the city. None of them, however, ever saw the square. Its story begins much later, in 1914, when architect Aníbal González began work on the site in preparation for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, an event intended to highlight Spain’s cultural links with Latin America.

González conceived the square as a grand architectural statement, blending Art Deco, Spanish Renaissance Revival, Spanish Baroque Revival, and Neo-Mudéjar styles. The result is a vast semi-circular complex of buildings and towers that seems to embrace the open space in front of it. A wide moat-like canal borders the plaza, enclosing a broad central expanse anchored by the Vicente Traver fountain. Four elegant bridges cross the canal, representing the historic kingdoms of Castile, León, Aragon, and Navarre.

One of the plaza’s most distinctive features lies along the curved buildings that frame the square. Here, 52 colourful alcoves or niches line the walls, each dedicated to a Spanish province. Decorated with intricate azulejo tiles, they display painted maps and historical scenes, with benches inviting visitors to pause. Originally, the shelves within these alcoves functioned as small lending libraries, offering books related to each province.

Walking beneath the arcades reveals shifting perspectives of tile, brick, and water, while hiring a small boat to glide along the canal offers a dreamlike view of the square from below. Musicians, photographers, and passers-by animate the open space, making the square one of Seville’s most memorable places to linger.