Seville · Spain
Calle Mármoles
A practical guide to the Roman columns of Calle Mármoles in Seville: what they are, how much time to give them, what to look at in five minutes and how to fit them in on the way to Casa de Pilatos.
Worth it if you're passing on the way to Casa de Pilatos. It's three columns in a pit and you'll see them in five minutes, but they're the oldest thing still standing in Seville.
On a residential street in the San Bartolomé neighborhood, a step from Santa Cruz, three Roman columns of Egyptian granite stand sunk in a railed-off pit. They’re about 9 meters tall, they sit on their original foundations, and the Roman ground level lies about 4.5 meters below the sidewalk. They’re the oldest standing structures in Seville, older than the Cathedral and older than the Alcázar.
Our experience
We passed by on Monday morning, at the end of our walk through the Barrio de Santa Cruz and on the way to Casa de Pilatos, about 200 meters away. We gave it five minutes, which is what it asks for. We put it on the route because it cost nothing, had no hours and was exactly on the way. The full morning is in our day 9.
A bit of history
The columns were carved in Egypt, almost certainly at Aswan, in the late 1st or early 2nd century, in the time of Trajan or Hadrian, the two emperors born in nearby Itálica. They traveled down the Nile, across the Mediterranean and up the Guadalquivir to Hispalis, Roman Seville. There were six, and they formed the portico of a building that tradition attributes to a temple of Hercules, the city’s mythical founder, though no inscription confirms it. A 2021 study even suggests they may have come from a temple in Itálica.
Over the centuries they were buried almost up to their capitals. In the 16th century they reappeared and gave the street its name. In 1574 columns were taken from here for the new Alameda de Hércules: one broke in transit and two arrived, and they still hold up the statues of Hercules and Julius Caesar. Until 1886 the three that stayed were inside the courtyard of a house; that year the city bought the building and tore it down to put them on view. In 2021 they were restored at a cost of €90,000.
What to see, in order
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The Egyptian granite
Up close you can see the pink-and-gray speckle of Aswan granite, the same stone as the obelisks of Karnak. Each shaft is a single piece.
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The difference in level
Lean over the railing: the Roman ground level is about 4.5 meters below the street. The walls of the pit are centuries of built-up soil and rubble.
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The marble bases
Egyptian shafts on Andalusian marble. Sources disagree on which bases are Attic and which one is Ionic; the difference is subtle.
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The street name
"Mármoles" (marbles) comes from these stones. It's one of the few street names in Seville that describes a Roman ruin.
Tips we wish we’d known
Tips
- Read up a little before you arrive. It's a history stop, not a photo stop: the columns photograph badly on a phone, with cars and facades in the frame.
- Watch your step: the pit sits at the edge of a narrow street with car traffic.
- The photo that works is from the railing, looking down into the pit and then up along the shafts.
- There's no restroom. Use the one at Casa de Pilatos.
Do
- Pair it with Casa de Pilatos and the Convent of San Leandro: the three stops are a few minutes apart on foot.
- If you later go to the Alameda de Hércules, look for the two columns at the south end: they're siblings of these. The ones at the north end are modern copies.
- If you're into Roman Seville, set aside half a day for Itálica, 10 kilometers away.
Don’t
- Don't expect an archaeological park: there's no museum, no audio guide and no shop. The information panel may be worn.
- Don't pay anyone who offers to "explain the columns": there's no official guide service here.
- Don't eat at the restaurants with touts on the way to Plaza de Pilatos.
Frequently asked questions
What are the Calle Mármoles columns?
Three Roman columns of Egyptian granite, about 9 meters tall, from the late 1st or early 2nd century. They formed the portico of a building that tradition identifies as a temple to Hercules.
How much does it cost to see them?
Nothing. They're on the street, visible at any hour.
How much time do you need?
Five minutes is enough; ten if you want to read the panel and take a close look at the stone.
Where are the other columns?
There were six. In 1574 columns were taken from here to the Alameda de Hércules: one broke on the way and two made it, and they still stand there with the statues of Hercules and Julius Caesar.