The Renaissance made itself felt in Spain during the reign of Charles V., and was productive of the plateresco style. Seville contains two imposing monuments of this type of architecture--the Ayuntamiento (Town Hall) and Lonja (Exchange). The first-named was begun in 1527 by Diego de Riaño, and completed under Felipe II., about forty years later. Madrazo considers the building “somewhat inharmonious through the variety, a little excessive, of its lines, but admirable for the richness of the decoration and for fine and delicate execution--a merit of the first importance in structures of this style, where the sculptor or stone-cutter ranked with the architect.”
The lower and older storey has three façades, all elaborately chased and designed like silversmiths’ work. The central façade, facing the Calle de Génova, bears the statues of Saints Ferdinand, Leandro, and Isidoro--symbolical of the temporal and spiritual power. The right façade is the purest and most regular of the three. The upper storey, belonging to the reign of Felipe II., appears almost plain in comparison with the tower. In the vestibule is a noble Latin inscription relating to justice. The lower Sala Capitular is a magnificent apartment worthy, as Madrazo remarks, of the Senate of a great republic. It is adorned with the statues of the Castilian kings down to Charles V., with a rich frieze designed with genii, masks, and animals, and with appropriate legends. The upper Sala Capitular has a magnificent _artesonado_ ceiling. Over the grand staircase are a fine coffered ceiling and another in the form of a cupola. The archives of the municipality contain several valuable historical documents, and the embroidered banner of St Ferdinand.
The Lonja or Exchange dates from Felipe II.’s reign. The Patio de los Naranjos was formerly frequented by the merchants and brokers of Seville for the transaction of business, and this practice interfering seriously with divine worship in the Cathedral, the Archbishop, Cristobal de Rojas, petitioned Felipe II. to follow the precedent just established by Sir Thomas Gresham and to build an Exchange or Casa de Contratacion. The preparation of the plans was confided to Herrera, and the building, under the direction of Juan de Minjares, was finished in 1598--at precisely the time, as Ford remarks, that the commerce of Seville began to decline. The Lonja in its stern simplicity reflects, like the Escorial, the temper of Felipe II.--a sovereign, unpopular though he may have been, in whom it is impossible not to recognise the elements of greatness. The edifice forms a perfectly regular quadrangle, and the sobriety of the decoration affords a striking contrast to the gorgeous profusion of the Ayuntamiento. The inner court is noble and severe with its gallery of Doric and Ionic columns. The dignity of the whole has been impaired by later additions and restorations. Here are deposited the archives of the Indies (_i.e._ South America), the documents being arranged in handsome mahogany cases. They have never been thoroughly gone through and examined. The business men of Seville soon abandoned their Exchange, and it is chiefly to be remembered as the seat of Murillo’s Academy of Painters, founded in 1660.