MAIN MONUMENTS OF SALAMANCA

PLAZA MAYOR (THE MAIN SQUARE)

This square is enchanting at any time of the day or night.

Without a doubt, one of the most beautiful squares in Spain and throughout the world, it is one of the most important Baroque monuments in the Peninsula.

It has always been a popular meeting point and the trueheart of the city. It is here that the people of Salamanca from different periods of time have spent many unforgettable moments. For those visiting, it is simply magical.

Declared a National Monument in 1935, it is considered the most decorated, proportional and harmonious plaza of its time for the Baroque-style beauty of its design and structure.

It contains 88 arches and numerous carved medallions.

People continue to celebrate many of the city´s main eventshere as they did in previous times: bullfighting, religious processions and even public executions took place in the Salamanca Plaza Mayor. It was quite common for some of the flat owners in the square to rent out their balconies to spectators for a lot of money.

Interesting anecdotes about our Plaza Mayor

From the mid XIV century until 1954,there were various gardens in the center of the square. A curious ritual during that time, involved the men walking around the gardens clockwise as the women walked around them in a counter clockwise direction. Men and women arranged their dates here in this famous square where many love affairs have begun.

Since the XV century, on August 15thof every year, in the central area of the Town Hall located in the Plaza Mayor, a Spanish Flag is raised on a flagpole bearing a figure of a Bull. This tradition and the figure itself are called the “Mariseca.” It is installed mid-summer to mark the coming of the Salamanca festival in September, and taken down when the festival is finished.

En 1455 it was decreed that “a bull would be given to the one who took the responsibility and care of putting up the “Mariseca” and painting it on August 13, 1455.” During this period, the person in charge of this installation would receive a bull from the bullfights of the celebrations as payment for his work.

The construction of the Plaza Mayor dates back to the years between 1729 and 1755.