Castle of the Three Dragons
The Castle of the Three Dragons (Catalan: Castell dels Tres Dragons, Spanish: Castillo de los Tres Dragones), is the popular name given to the modernisme building built between 1887 and 1888 as a Café-Restaurant for the 1888 Universal Exposition of Barcelona by Lluís Domènech i Montaner. This name was probably adopted from the 1865 play by Serafí Pitarra.
History
In its time it was one of the main buildings of the exhibition, facing the now-disappeared Palace of Fine Arts. It was at the end of the main street running from the Arc de Triomf to the Parc de la Ciutadella. Work began in September 1887, but due to many delays, it was not ready on the day of the inauguration on April 8 and was delayed until August 17. For this reason Domènech i Montaner resigned as the responsible architect.[1]
At the end of exhibition, Domenech installed an industrial arts workshop related to architecture, with the possible collaboration of Antoni Maria Gallissà i Soqué. Later it was dedicated to museum purposes as a museum of history, archeology, biology and natural sciences. During the Spanish Civil War it was closed, after suffering some bombing damage by Francoist aviation. From 1942 to 1945 it was a dining hall for Social Aid, and later returned to its function as the Zoology Museum of Barcelona, in which capacity it served, with some interruptions, from 1920 to 2010, when the collection were dismantled and relocated to the new Museum of Natural Sciences of Barcelona (in Catalan: Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona) at the Forum Building.[2] The building received a major restoration in the 1980s by architects Cristian Cirici, Pep Bonet and Carles Bassó.[1]
Building
It is built with brick and sheet iron, and is a castle-shaped building crowned with battlements. The floor is almost square, with four towers at the corners and perimeter walkways running between a double facade. It has an innovative transparent structure of brick and iron, something similar to that which appeared in the proposal by Hendrik Petrus Berlage in his project for the Amsterdam Stock Exchange.
The decoration, mostly in ceramic, features paintings by Joan Llimona and Alexandre de Riquer (1888), and Pius Font i Quer and Joan Baptista Aguilar-Amat (1927), sculptures designed by Antoni Vilanova and executed by Alfons Juyol (1888) and the Gonzalez Brothers (1927 ), and ceramics from the nearby Pujol i Bausis factory. Decorative elements can be seen on the battlements, where blue-on-white, shield-shaped panels depict a series of plants and animals, including a number of drinks and liquors. The stained glass windows, now partially lost, were the work of Antoni Rigalt i Blanch.
See also
References
- ^ a b Escudos del Castell dels Tres Dragons
- ^ Quelart, R. (28 May 2010) El museo de zoología de Barcelona cierra las puertas La Vanguardia. Cultura.
- v
- t
- e
- Barceloneta
- Sant Sebastià
- Somorrostro
structures
- Ancient synagogue
- Arc de Triomf
- Arenas de Barcelona
- Avinguda Diagonal
- Barcelona Cathedral
- Barcelona Pavilion
- Barcelona Royal Shipyard
- Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy
- Basilica of Saint Joseph Oriol
- Basilica of Saints Justus and Pastor
- Basilica of the Immaculate Conception
- Bellesguard
- Casa Amatller
- Casa Batlló
- Casa Bonaventura Ferrer
- Casa Bonet
- Casa Calvet
- Casa de les Punxes
- Casa Lleó Morera
- Casa Martí
- Casa Milà
- Casa Vicens
- Castle of the Three Dragons
- City Hall
- Columbus Monument
- Diagonal Zero Zero
- Dona i Ocell
- Els Quatre Gats
- Estació de França
- Fabra Observatory
- Font de Canaletes
- Forum Building
- Fossar de les Moreres
- Hospital de Sant Pau
- Hotel Arts
- Hotel Melia Barcelona Sky
- La Boqueria
- La Monumental
- Library of Catalonia
- Magic Fountain of Montjuïc
- Mercat del Born
- Monastery of Pedralbes
- Montjuïc Castle
- Montjuïc Communications Tower
- Old Hospital de la Santa Creu
- Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya
- Palau del Parlament de Catalunya
- Palau Güell
- Palau Nacional
- Royal Palace of Pedralbes
- Palau Reial Major
- Palau Robert
- Poble Espanyol
- Port Olímpic
- Port Vell
- Sagrada Família
- Santa Maria del Mar
- Santa Maria del Pi
- Temple Expiatori del Sagrat Cor
- Torre de Collserola
- Torre Glòries
- Venetian Towers
- Virreina Palace
- World Trade Center Barcelona
- Archaeology Museum of Catalonia
- Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art
- CaixaForum Barcelona
- Can Framis Museum
- Centre d'Art Santa Mònica
- Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona
- CosmoCaixa Barcelona
- FC Barcelona Museum
- Fundació Antoni Tàpies
- Fundació Joan Miró
- Gabinet de les Arts Gràfiques
- Gaudí House Museum
- Jardí Botànic de Barcelona
- Juan Antonio Samaranch Olympic and Sports Museum
- Maritime Museum
- Museu Barbier-Mueller d'Art Precolombí
- Museu de la Música
- Museu de la Xocolata
- Museu de les Arts Decoratives
- Museu Frederic Marès
- Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya
- Museu Picasso
- Museu Tèxtil i d'Indumentària
- Museum of the History of Barcelona
- Museum of the History of Catalonia
- Perfume Museum
- Vil·la Joana
41°23′17″N 2°11′00″E / 41.3881°N 2.1834°E / 41.3881; 2.1834