Palacio de Viana

In Cordoba, one of the best ways of displaying grandeur is with a courtyard, and Viana Palace has twelve, plus a garden. There is little more to add, but let us recall that this is a noble residence that belonged to the aristocracy from the 15th to the 19th centuries, until the 3rd marchioness of Viana sold the house to the Provincial Savings Bank of Cordoba in 1980. It currently belongs to the CajaSur Foundation.

The Patio de la Capilla, or Chapel Courtyard, takes its name from the recently restored adjoining chapel. It could almost be considered a small archaeological museum, due to the number and value of the pieces displayed there. As the legacy of a tradition among the nobility, which was keen to show off its wealth through these elements, it is a decorative feature that is also common among many of the private courtyards in the city. It is, most certainly, the coolest courtyard in Viana Palace thanks to the dense shade cast by the citric trees here, but also offers the smallest variety of plant species as flowers do not bloom easily here. However, this will surely change during FLORA.