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Main facade of the Hotel Internacional

Date
1887
Archive
Municipal Archive of Barcelona
Document type
Mapes i plànols
Reference code
CAT-AHCB4-202-08131
Link to the online document
Description

Elevation of the main facade of the Hotel Internacional, which was built on Passeig de Colom on the occasion of the Barcelona Universal Exhibition of 1888. Conceived as a temporary building, it was erected in a record time of 53 days and demolished once the Exhibition was over. It was built on a plot of 5,000 m2, had five floors and capacity for 2,000 guests spread over 600 rooms and 30 apartments for large families. The interior was decorated with stuccos based on drawings by Alexandre de Riquer, Joan Llimona and Dionís Baixeras. The Universal Exhibitions, the first of which was held in Paris in 1855, were considered the largest political, economic and social events in the world, in which the different participating countries exhibited their technological advances. The Universal Exhibition of 1888 received visitors from all over the world and provided a great urban and economic boost to the city, as well as giving Barcelona a great international profile.
The project of the Hotel Internacional was signed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner (1850-1923), outstanding architect, author of, among others, key works of modernism such as the Palau de la Música or the Hospital de Sant Pau. On the occasion of the Universal Exhibition, Domènech also carried out the reform of the Casa de la Ciutat and the construction of the Castle of the Three Dragons, which is still standing today.