Casa de Pilatos

Work was started in 1481 by Don Pedro Enríquez, a former governor of Andalucía, but it was his son, Don Fadrique, who redesigned it in a mixture of Mudéjar, Renaissance and Gothic styles. The entrance is via a marble triumphal arch to the porticoed apeadero, where carriages waited, and into the central courtyard with its harmonious mixture of architectural styles.

It is surrounded by a series of irregular arches topped with Gothic balustrades. The corners are occupied by three statues of the goddesses Minerva, Ceres and Athene, and the central fountain was imported from Genoa in Italy. Several rooms are entered via the main patio, beyond which lie pretty gardens with Italian-style loggias, small pools and statuary.

To the right, the Praetorium Room has a beautiful coffered ceiling, marquetry and 16th-century muqarna cones (stalactite designs). The stairs leading to the upper floors are magnificent – a dazzling array of tiles in light blues, greens and reds, covered by a coffered ceiling with more stalactites; these floors are occupied and can only be visited on a guided tour.

They contain paintings and frescoes, including the Apotheosis of Hercules ceiling by Francisco Pacheco, the mentor of Velázquez, and three paintings by sevillano artist Sebastián de Llanos Valdés.