One of the best examples of Spanish civil Gothic, represented by the Silk Exchange of Valencia, was declared a World Heritage Site in 1996. Lonja also called Merchant's or House of Trade, now continues to fulfill its business dedicated to the recruitment of agricultural products, but also hosts numerous exhibitions and concerts in what is now the headquarters of the Academy of Culture of Valencia. Built in the fifteenth century under the direction of architect Pere Compte, occupies an area of 1,990 m2 distributed in a garden forming a three-storey building with crenellated top floor. In it there are two bodies: the right of the room houses the procurement, while the left is the building that housed the former Consulate of the Sea, founded in 1283.
Hiring The Hall of the Silk Exchange is designed as a rectangular, symmetrical space that opens onto the market square on the stairs. It has high ceilings supported by 24 original helical columns 18 meters high, eight of which are located in the middle of the room and the other attached to the walls of his three ships. These pillars, twisted like skeins of silk, open to form the ribs of the vault. The floor is covered with marble of different colors Alcubles. The main entrance is flanked by two windows with stone tracery twins. The capital that crowns the mullion stages the flogging of a man in warning to unscrupulous merchants. The general impression of all is elegance and balance of lines, accentuated by the perfect symmetry.
Next to this room stands the tower with only three windows. Inside there is a spiral staircase of 110 steps without central axis, which was a major architectural display of the time. The body under this tower was occupied by the old chapel dedicated to the Conception of the Virgin, characterized by its high ceilings. The main floor room has a flat roof and was, like the top floor, used as a prison.
The Consulate is accessed by a door of the room across the courtyard Recruitment. Its internal dimensions are 10.2 x 8.3 meters. The downstairs lounge was once the headquarters of the Commercial Court. The main hall or Chamber Daurada (Golden Hall) stands for the extraordinary wood paneling. It is a rectangular piece of the fourteenth century characterized by large beams that are supported by finely carved brackets.
This unique Spanish Flamboyant Gothic building was to host the first destination of the oil market bag, and then engage in silk, whence comes the name is generally known, and maritime trade. Later housed the institution of the Consulate or Consulate of the Sea, and Valencia or Taula Taula of Canvis, founded in 1408, a municipal bank is highly solvent.
The power and wealth that this Mediterranean city of merchants accumulated mainly in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries justified the construction of this building unique for their architectural and historical merited inclusion on the World Heritage List.
To visit the Silk Exchange: open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 am to 14:00 hours and 16:30 hours to 20:30 hours, Sundays and holidays visiting hours is 10: 00 to 15:00.
The ticket price is two euros, children, seniors and students and groups of at least 10 people are charged one euro. On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays the ticket price is free.
Silk Exchange, Market Square address, Valencia
 Chapter Hall of Santo Domingo . It has four free-standing columns, (1310-1320) - |  Lonja of Palma . Has six free-standing columns, (1426-1448). |  Silk Exchange, presents eight free-standing columns, (1482-1499). |
| The landmarks of the Market Square of Valencia. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Facade of the Central Market. | Facade of the Silk Exchange. | Facade of the church of Saint Johns. | |