Plateresque Architecture

Plateresque is a Spanish architectural style that emerged in the late 15th century and continued for roughly two centuries, reaching its height under the reign of Charles V in cities including Salamanca, Leon, Burgos and Santiago de Compostela, and later in Spain's American colonies. It is a transitional style that keeps Gothic spatial planning while covering facades, especially around doors and windows, in dense ornament of floral motifs, medallions and heraldic devices combined with Renaissance elements such as rustication and classical capitals, arranged in the three part facade divisions typical of the style. Its name comes from the Spanish word for silver, plata, a comparison to the fine detail of a silversmith's work. The New Cathedral of Salamanca, the Hospital of the Catholic Monarchs in Santiago de Compostela and the Convento de San Marcos in Leon are leading examples, and the style faded after 1563 when Juan de Herrera's austere design for El Escorial set a new, plainer Renaissance standard.