The Golden Hall at Llotja de Mar is one of the most singular spaces and full of artistic value. The walls are clad in damask silk and you can see the coat of arms and motto of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce. Of note are the golden frames and pediments of the doors, the sculptures, furniture and cut-glass teardrop chandeliers.
This room is like no other. Formerly the site of the Academy of Fine Arts, tasked with public education in Barcelona, it was here that architect Antoni Gaudí took his first steps in the world of architecture and Pablo Picasso produced his first paintings.
The room has been fully remodelled. The arches were found intact when the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce undertook the remodelling of Llotja de Mar in 1973 and the intermediate beams and moulding were demolished.
The Contracting Hall is the architectural highlight of Llotja de Mar, conserved in this space since Medieval times.
It is a large room with soaring, 14-metre-high ceilings, four columns and six arches that support the wooden beams of the upper floor.
The scallop shells on the arches alternate with the coat of arms of the king and the city of Barcelona, since it was Peter III and the Consell de Cent government institution that promoted the building’s construction.