Queen's sewing box
Encyclopedia
The Queen's sewing box (Costurero de la Reina) is a building constructed in the late nineteenth century in the gardens of the Palace of San Telmo
, now the Maria Luisa Park
in Seville
, Spain.
This unique building takes the form of a small hexagonal castle with turrets at the corners.
The building was the guard house or garden retreat. It is the oldest building in Seville in the neomudéjar style.
The architect was Juan Talavera de la Vega, father of the regional architect Juan Talavera y Heredia.
The name comes from a popular tradition that Dona Mercedes of Orléans
, the future wife of King Alfonso XII of Spain, retired to the pavilion where she passed her time sewing.
The reality is more prosaic. The formal name is the "Pavilion of San Telmo".
Dona Mercedes died of typhus about fifteen years before the building was erected in 1893.
The Queen's sewing box today has a tourist information office on the ground floor.
The first floor has an exhibition hall with a historical interpretive center on the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929
and a cafe.
The building was restored in the spring of 2007 to repair the main structure and to arrange the interior to make it more functional. At this time, a watchtower was installed on the roof and the gardens were reconstructed.
Palace of San Telmo
The Palace of San Telmo is a historical edifice in Seville, southern Spain, now the seat of the presidency of the Andalusian Autonomous Government. Construction of the building began in 1682 outside the walls of the city, on property belonging to the Tribunal of the Holy Office, the institution...
, now the Maria Luisa Park
Maria Luisa Park
The Maria Luisa Park is a public park that stretches along the Guadalquivir River in Seville, Spain. It is Seville's principal green area.-History:...
in Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, Spain.
This unique building takes the form of a small hexagonal castle with turrets at the corners.
The building was the guard house or garden retreat. It is the oldest building in Seville in the neomudéjar style.
The architect was Juan Talavera de la Vega, father of the regional architect Juan Talavera y Heredia.
The name comes from a popular tradition that Dona Mercedes of Orléans
Mercedes of Orléans
Maria de la Mercedes of Orléans was Queen Consort of Spain, the first wife of Alfonso XII. She was born in Madrid, Spain, the daughter of Antoine of Orléans, Duke of Montpensier and of Infanta Luisa Fernanda of Spain....
, the future wife of King Alfonso XII of Spain, retired to the pavilion where she passed her time sewing.
The reality is more prosaic. The formal name is the "Pavilion of San Telmo".
Dona Mercedes died of typhus about fifteen years before the building was erected in 1893.
The Queen's sewing box today has a tourist information office on the ground floor.
The first floor has an exhibition hall with a historical interpretive center on the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929
Ibero-American Exposition of 1929
The Ibero-American Exposition of 1929 was a world's fair held in Seville, Spain, from the 9th of May 1929 until the 21st of June 1930. Countries in attendance of the exposition included: Portugal, The United States, Brazil, Uruguay, Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Chile, the Republic of Colombia, Cuba,...
and a cafe.
The building was restored in the spring of 2007 to repair the main structure and to arrange the interior to make it more functional. At this time, a watchtower was installed on the roof and the gardens were reconstructed.