Casco Antiguo

The Casco Antiguo is the city centre district of Seville, the capital of the Spanish region of Andalusia. It lies on the east bank of the Guadalquivir river. The Casco Antiguo borders the Macarena to the north, Nervión and San Pablo-Santa Justa to the east and the Distrito Sur to the south. Bridges across the Guadalquivir link the Casco Antiguo to Triana and Los Remedios on the Isla de La Cartuja.BuildingsThere are three UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the district, the Cathedral of Seville, the Alcazar and the Archivo General de Indias. The Gothic Cathedral was built in 1403 on the site of a former mosque of which the Almohad minaret, the Giralda, was retained as a bell tower. It is the largest Gothic building in Europe, and houses the tomb of Christopher Colombus. The Alcázar, built by the Moors in 712, was converted into a Christian royal residence in 1248. The Archive of the Indies was designed as a trade exchange of American treasures by Juan de Herrera under the orders of King Phillip II of Spain. It was never used in that role and in 1784 King Charles III of Spain decided to store all documents relating to the conquest of the Americas.