Llotja de la Seda
The Llotja de la Seda (Valencian pronunciation: [ˈʎɔdʒa ðe la ˈseða], Spanish: Lonja de la Seda, English "Silk Exchange") is a late Valencian Gothic style civil building in Valencia, Spain, built between 1482 and 1548, and one of the principal tourist attractions in the city. The UNESCO considered it as a World Heritage Site in 1996 since "the site is of outstanding universal value as it is a wholly exceptional example of a secular building in late Gothic style, which dramatically illustrates the power and wealth of one of the great Mediterranean mercantile cities."
La Lonja is composed of three parts (plus the Orange Garden - a walled court-yard). The main hall, Sala de Contratacion (The Contract Hall) is an enormous, lavishly decorated space supported by gorgeous twisted columns. This was the centre of life in La Lonja, the place where the merchants would meet, deal and sign. The side-wing is named the Pavilion of the Consulate, and this was the seat of the Tribunal del Mar - the first merchant tribunal to ever be formed in Spain. The first two floors were the main function rooms, with the upper one hosting a richly decorated ceiling - a masterpiece of medieval art which had the King ride out of the capital just to see it. These rooms are still authentically furnished. On occasions, the Tribunal would imprison merchants for debts in the central tower of La Lonja - the third part of the structure.
