Trade Square

Illustration by Arturo Redondo of the Trade Square (Plaza de la Contratación) in Seville in 1519.

Warning! In a city with so much activity and trade like Seville, where people gathered from Spain, Portugal, Genoa, Flanders, and who knows how many other nations, it was well worth settling contracts in writing, as spoken words vanished into thin air.

The House of Trade (Casa de la Contratación) was founded in 1503 to take control of trade from the Indies. It was housed in several rooms of the Alcázar, overlooking a small square in which scribes and official clerks were kept busy with clients, officially witnessing their business dealings.