One of the most outstanding buildings in Palma de Mallorca is often mistaken for a church. Sa Llotja is not and has never been a place of worship of a religious kind; it was the old seat of the Col.legi de Mercaders (Merchants guild), in other words a trading exchange.

Sa Llotja (La Lonja in Castellano) is considered a masterpiece of Gothic architecture. It was built from 1420 to 1452 by Guillem Sagrera, who was responsible not only for the project, but also for the building of the work down to its sculptural details, such as those of the Ángel de los mercaderes above the main portal and the ten gargoyles, plus various others all of which are of a splendid quality. The Llotja’s indoors forms a single space with two rows of tall, spiralling columns, creating a magnificent space with a splendidly vaulted ceiling. During the 15th century, the Mediterranean Sea came up to the Muralla Islámica (city walls) into which the Llotja building was seamlessly integrated.

The building is currently closed for extensive restauration work, including a new flat roof and some meticulous repair of the stone work including most of the sculptures, all courtesy of the Consell de Mallorca.

The photo (top) was chosen from my archive. It was taken in Palma de Mallorca, Baleares, Spain. The date: January 11th, 2008. The time was 13:54:11. The photo (bottom) was taken from the Internet, courtesy of Archiseek.com.

Muchas gracias.