Mercado Colon, Valencia, Spain
Architect
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Francisco Mora
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Date Built
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1916
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Location
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Cirilo Amorós,
Conde Salvatierra, Martínez Ferrando, and Jorge
Juan streets
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Description
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As its name implies,
the Mercado Colon started life as a city
market. It was designed by Francisco Mora
who, at the time, was the city architect.
Mora's design was influenced by the Catalan
Modernist Movement and the work of architects
such as Doménech i Montaner, Puig, and
Cadafalch. The website for today's market
says that, "... The building covers a
large linear space divided into three bays
with metal trusses, and it has two prominent
masonry facades that resemble triumphal
arches with exquisitely crafted
ornamentation and colors. The perimeter is
lined with a stone base that supports an
artistic wrought iron fence in the form of a
100 x 47 meter rectangular enclosure with
beveled edges."
Over time changes in shopping habits prompted by
the opening of supermarkets and shopping malls
in the area saw trading at the Mercado Colon
come to a virtual standstill. "As a
result, it was decided to renovate the
market. During the first phase, aside from
restoring the building, a three-level
underground parking was built along with a
shopping mall in the lower ground floor. The
second phase consisted of establishing this
space as a commercial area. .... The first
phase of the project involved complex
excavation and support techniques in order
to maintain the original structure. It
consisted of three well-differentiated
efforts in terms of their complexity, focus,
and importance. The first step was to
support, consolidate, and refit the existing
foundation in order to excavate four levels
below the existing ground level. The second
step focused on restoring the historical
bay, which showed signs of settling and
significant rust at the joints of the
original iron structure. The third step
consisted of refurbishing the masonry
facades and all the elements that had fallen
or been modified in order to restore the
building’s original appearance."
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