Walls of Sevilla

You are walking beside the old walls of Sevilla, on the most visible surviving stretch, between the Macarena and the Córdoba Gates. What you see standing here is not Roman: it is essentially Almohad, built in the 12th century, when Sevilla — then Isbiliya — was one of the great capitals of Al-Andalus. There had been older Roman and Visigothic walls, but it was under the Almohads that the city received this great belt of rammed earth and brick, with square towers, an outer barbican and monumental gates. Walk slowly. Look at the texture, between gold and red: rammed earth with lime, a technique called tapial, very resistant to sun and time. Count the towers: each was a lookout that allowed defenders to cover the curtain wall with arrows. More than a hundred towers ringed the city. Later Christian Sevilla reused the walls for centuries, until the 19th century, in the name of progress and hygiene, demolished most of them. Sevilla then lost much of its medieval skyline. That is why this stretch feels almost miraculous: it is the best way to imagine the walled city that King Ferdinand III met when he entered in 1248. Visitor tip: come at sunset, when the low light turns the stones copper. Walk from the Macarena gate to the Córdoba gate calmly. Then step into the Basilica of La Macarena right next door.