THE palacios and fine casas of Seville are numerous. Some of them retain a distinctly MudÉjar design in their architecture, and all of them possess an Oriental atmosphere or tone. One may spend many hours in visiting the courts of the big houses of the city. As a rule, the porter has instructions to admit strangers into the courts, but very rarely within the houses. But from the courts one may gain very considerable knowledge of the progress of architectural style in the dwelling-houses of the South of Spain, where, above all, we may trace the influence and art of the Morisco designer and craftsman.

We will first visit the Casa de los Taveras, in the Calle Bustos Tavera. The house is principally celebrated as the scene of the tribunal of the Inquisition from 1626 to 1639. In the corridors is a collection of family portraits.

Finer, from the point of view of architecture and adornment, is the Casa de los Marqueses de Torre Blanca, in the Calle de Santiago, number thirty-seven. It has a very beautiful patio, and a splendid marble staircase. These two houses are mentioned as well worth seeing in the little book Sevilla HistÓrica.

Roaming in the Calle O'Donnell, I peeped into the court of number twenty-four. The fine patio is surrounded with the heads of bulls killed in the arena. Number seventeen in the Calle Alfonso XII. is another handsome casa, with a typical court. Visitors may discover many sumptuous houses in this quarter of the city. The Casa Alba once had eleven courts and nine fountains. It is decidedly Moorish in build, with Renaissance details in the stucco-work. This beautiful palace, in the Calle de DueÑas, was at one time owned by the Ribera family (the Dukes of AcalÁ). It was begun about 1483. The Casa Alba is larger than the Casa Pilatos, described in the literary chapter of this book.

Mr. Digby Wyatt says of the Casa Alba, in his Architect's Note Book in Spain, that this is one of the rare instances of Renaissance ornamentations executed by Moorish workmen. 'For these, no doubt, they were furnished with drawings or models, since in no other parts of the same building, and especially in many beautiful rooms in the interior, where they have apparently been left to themselves, they have reverted partly to MudÉjar work, and partly to the old types of geometrical enrichment, which may be regarded as specifically their own. Much of this is almost reduced to a flat surface by repeated coats of whitewash.'

The Casa de los Abades is 'more Italian in its plateresque than is usual in other houses in Seville,' says Mr. Digby Wyatt. The mansion was built early in the fifteenth century, and was modified and embellished by the Pinedos, a Genoese family, in 1533. Mr. Wyatt tells us that: 'If it were not for the peculiar engrailed double edging to the arches, the thinness of the marble central window shaft, and a few Oriental turns here and there given to the foliage and enrichments of the mouldings, one could almost believe that this architecture was regular Genoese cinque-cento.' After the Pinedo family, the casa came into the hands of the Abades, members of the Cathedral staff.

Patio del Casa Murillo

A MudÉjar window in the Fonda de Madrid has been sketched by Mr. Digby Wyatt in the afore-mentioned book. This is an ajimez window, 'through which the sun shines.' It is of brickwork and was 'once covered apparently in Moorish fashion with thin plaster, excepting the column which is of white marble.'

We may now visit the Palacio Arzobiscopal, the Archbishop's Palace, in the Plaza de la Giralda. The doors are in the plateresque style. You may enter the courtyard, and ascend the marble staircase, which is one of the most beautiful in the city. The SalÓn contains some pictures that were formerly in the Cathedral. Among them are three paintings by Alejo Fernandez, an artist of the early Sevillian school, representing the Conception, Birth, and Purification of the Virgin. There are also pictures by J. Herrera and Juan Zamora.

It is a few steps across the plaza to the Casa Lonja. This Renaissance edifice was erected in 1583. The Academy of Painters formerly held their councils in the Lonja. It is now a library, and a repository of archives relating to the Indies. The patio is fine, paved with marble, and surrounded by a double arcade. On the fountain is a statue of Columbus. A marble staircase, constructed in the time of Charles III., conducts the visitor to Achivo General de Indias.

From the Casa Lonja pass down the Calle Santa TomÁs to the Hospital de la Caridad. This institution has a church, built by Miguel de MaÑara. In the Annales de Sevilla, the author, Ortiz de ZuÑiga, says that the record of the Brotherhood of the Holy Charity dates back to 1578, and that the institution had probably existed then for a century. The object of La Santa Caridad was to provide Christian burial for evildoers and offenders against the law of Spain. La Caridad is, however, associated with Don Miguel de MaÑara Vicentelo de Leca, Knight of Calatrava, a Don Juan of Seville, who abandoned his profligate life, and became a devout pietist. In his youth, MaÑara was a renowned duellist, a boon companion, and a gambler. He was generous to his friends in a spendthrift fashion, and he was cultured enough to expend large sums of his wealth upon the fine arts. Murillo was under his patronage and enjoyed his friendship.

Don Miguel de MaÑara was born in the year 1626, and is supposed to have married the seÑorita of the House of Mendoza. There are several stories of the young rake's career in Seville, and of his resolve to dedicate his riches to the service of the Church and to the poor of the city of his birth. One day a gift of some choice hams was sent to MaÑara. In compliance with the regulations, the hams were detained by the customs' officers until the dues upon them were paid. The Don was extremely angered at the detention of the hams. He went out, in a furious passion, to upbraid the officials for the delay. As he paced fuming through the streets, 'the Lord poured a great weight upon his mind,' and MaÑara was suddenly convicted of the sinfulness and folly of his life. Such is one account of Don Miguel's 'conversion.' Another annalist informs us that MaÑara, while stumbling homewards after a night of carousal, saw a funeral procession approaching him. The priests and the usual torch-bearers accompanied the bier. Stepping up to the bearers, the young man said: 'Whose body is that which you are carrying?' The reply was startling: 'The body of Don Miguel de MaÑara.' The prodigal reeled away, filled with horror; for he had looked upon the corpse, and seen his own features. Upon the next morning MaÑara was found insensible in a church. It was the turning-point in his life. He became an ascetic and devotee. Because he liked chocolate, he refrained even from tasting that innocent beverage. He was seen no more among the dissolute of Seville, and his money went to the building and decoration of the Hospital and Church of the Holy Charity. In his treatise Discurso de la Verdad (Discourse upon Truth) Don Miguel MaÑara tells us of the hollowness of existence apart from holiness. He reflects often upon the solemnity of death, and the necessity for practising virtue and charity. His repute as an almsgiver of discretion was so great that one Don Gomez de Castro gave him an estate worth 500,000 ducats for charitable disbursement.

In the Sala del Cabildo of La Caridad, you may see a portrait of the pious founder, painted by Juan de la ValdÉs. MaÑara has a sad, thin face. He is seated at a table covered with black velvet and gold, and he appears to be reading aloud. A charity lad is seated on a stool, with a book on his knees. MaÑara's Toledan sword is exhibited in a case. He died in 1679, and bequeathed his fortune to the hospital, except some legacies to servants. To his confessor the Don presented his ivory Christ. His sister received a picture, which was upon his bedstead, representing the Saviour on the Cross. The work was said to be from the brush of Murillo.

The founder was interred in the vault of the hospital church. There is a legend that, two months after burial, the corpse was found without any trace of decay. It is also related that by the touch of some documents which had belonged to MaÑara, a knight of the Order of Santiago was cured of a headache.

In Mr. C. A. Stoddard's account of La Caridad, in Spanish Cities, the name of the founder is given wrongly as MaÑana. Mr. Stoddard writes that Don Miguel desired to be buried at the church door, with the epitaph upon his tomb: 'Here lies the worst man in the world.' MaÑara was, however, buried in a vault of the church, and in the inscription upon the stone he was lauded as 'the best of men.'

For viewing Murillo's pictures in the Hospital Church of La Caridad, it is best to seek admission in the afternoon. The Charity Hospital is built in the Greco-Romano style from designs by Bernard Simon de Pineda, or Pereda. Visitors should examine the five large azulejos of the exterior, said to have been designed by Murillo, the friend of the founder. The centre is Charity, a woman with a child in each arm and a boy at her side. Other designs represent Santiago slaying Moors, and San Jorge spearing the dragon.

Sir Stirling-Maxwell speaks of the Church of La Caridad as 'one of the most elegant in Seville.' The aisle widens beneath a lofty and ornate dome. One of the chief objects of interest is the famous retablo; but the church is mostly visited by admirers of Murillo. The eleven works of the master, which once adorned the building, were painted in four years. Soult carried away five of the paintings. Four of them were sold by the French marshal, and one was presented to the Louvre. Mr. Stoddard praises Moses and the Rock as one of the finest pictures of Murillo. There are three groups in the scene. Water gushes from a dark rock in the centre of the picture, and Moses, with hands folded, offers thanks for the miracle. Behind is Aaron, in an attitude of worship. The Israelites press forward to quench their thirst. Le Sed (The Thirst) has been reproduced by engraving, and is well known.

The other pictures by Murillo are the Infant Saviour, the Annunciation, and the San Juan de Dios. In the last painting the saint, assisted by an angel, is bearing a sick man to the hospital. Christ feeding the Five Thousand (Pan y Peces) and the Young John the Baptist are large pictures, showing Murillo's broad method.

The curious paintings by Juan ValdÉs Leal are described in the chapter on 'The Artists of Seville.' They are at the west end of the church.

The court through which one enters the hospital is very handsome, and a good example of the Sevillian patio. A Sister of Charity conducts the visitor to the wards and to the council room of the institution. The sick and the convalescent recline upon their beds, and there is a hush in the long chambers. The patients are all men. They appear to be well cared for, and the wards are clean and sunny.

In the Plazo de Alfaro, number seven, is the house where tradition states that Murillo lived. From the Plaza de Giralda follow the Calle de Barceguineria, and take the second street on the right hand side, passing the Church of Santa Teresa. Turn to the right at the end of the Calle de Santa Teresa. Murillo's house is in a corner of the Plaza de Alfaro. It is now occupied by the SeÑores LÓpez Cepero, two cultured and courteous brothers, the nephews of a greatly respected dean of the Cathedral, who in his day collected a number of fine pictures, and did much to encourage artists in the city.

Don Juan Maria LÓpez Cepero speaks English well. I paid three visits to the historic casa that he inhabits, and he told me that his house was open to all lovers of art who desire to see his collection of pictures. In the chapter on Sevillian artists will be found descriptions of some of the oil paintings in the Casa Murillo.

Don J. LÓpez Cepero showed me his beautiful garden, with its Moorish bath, frescoed walls, rose trees and carnations. The patio is planted with palms, and on the walls are pictures. The mural paintings in the garden have been attributed to Luis de Vargas; but they are unfortunately almost obliterated. At the end of a long salon, covered with pictures, is the room wherein Murillo is said to have died on April 3, 1682.

I am indebted to Don LÓpez Cepero for the opportunity of seeing his valuable pictures, for the information which he gave me concerning books upon Seville by Spanish authors, and for the permission granted to my collaborator to reproduce some of the paintings in photography. His services to me were most valuable, and I now repeat my thanks for his assistance.

The University, founded by Alfonso the Learned, is in the Calle de la Universidad. In the rooms are portraits of St. Francis of Borja and of Ignatius Loyola by Alonso Cano, and a picture of a saint by Zurbaran. The University Church has a notable retablo by Roelas; an Annunciation by Pacheco, and statues of St. Francis of Borja and of Loyola by MontaÑez. There is a monument to Enriquez de Ribera, and one to his wife Catalina in the nave. The Don was the first owner of the Casa Pilatos, and a benefactor of the city. It was he who founded the excellent Hospital Civil, in 1500, in the Calle de Santiago. The building was reconstructed near the Puerta de la Macarena in 1559.

The Hospital Civil is best reached by the tramway from the Plaza de la ConstituciÓn. It is surrounded by gardens, and has a charming patio. In the church of the hospital there are pictures of saints by Zurbaran, and the Apotheosis of St. Ermenigild and Descent of the Holy Ghost by Roelas.

The most handsome of the Renaissance buildings in Seville is that of the Casa de Ayuntamiento, or City Hall, in the Plaza de la ConstituciÓn. It was designed by RiaÑo in 1526. The ornate carved doors, and the plateresque ornamentations of the masonry are highly decorative, and the marble floors and vaulted ceiling within should be seen. In the Municipal Library of the Ayuntamiento is the banner of the city, of the fifteenth century, bearing a figure of San Fernando.

We have not yet visited the Biblioteca Columbina, given to the city by Fernando, son of Christopher Columbus. It is in the Cathedral precincts, and can be entered from the Patio de los Naranjos (the Court of the Oranges). The beautiful illuminated Bible of Alfonso the Learned, by Pedro de Pampeluna, used to be shown here, but it has, I believe, been removed by the Chapter. The Columbus manuscripts are here, in glass cases. There is a copy of the Tractatus de Imagine Mundi, with notes by Columbus, and the famous treatise attempting to prove Scriptural prophecies concerning the discovery of the New World. A sword here exhibited is said to be that of Perez de Vargas, used by him in the capture of Seville. I have referred to the manuscripts of Christopher Columbus in the historical portion of this book.

Close to the Fabrica de Tabacos is the Palace of San Telmo, the former residence of the Dukes de Montpensier. The building dates from 1734, and it was first used as a naval school. It passed into the hands of the Infanta Maria Luisa, widow of the Duke of Montpensier. The palacio has been shorn of its splendour by the removal of most of its works of art. It is of little interest; but the garden is a beautiful shady retreat, with semi-tropical plants and trees.

There are but few statues in the streets of the city. Velazquez has been honoured by a bronze figure, which stands in the Plaza del Duque de la Victoria. It was cast by Susillo in 1892. The monument to Murillo, in the Plaza del Museo, is also of bronze. It is the work of Sabino Medinia, and the cast was made in Paris in 1864.

Number eleven in the Plaza del Duque de la Victoria is now a large drapery store. It was formerly the splendid palace of the Marquis de Palomares. It is a fine example of a Seville residence.

As we wander from church to palace and alcÁzar of this ancient and beautiful capital, we are often reminded of the words of Cervantes in The Two Maiden Ladies: 'Seville is a city of Spain, of which you cannot fail to have heard frequent mention, considered, as it is, to be one of the wonders of the world.'

Amphora