The area occupied by Plaça de Font was part of the arena of the Roman Circus of the Roman City of Tarraco. The Circus was built at the end of the 1st century A.D. in the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian and it was in use until the 5th century, as we said before.

Roman Circus.

In the Middle Ages during the 12^th and 13^th century, the walls of the Circus were the wall that protected the city. In 1368 during Pere el Ceremoniós (Peter the Ceremonious) reign, the Circus was enclosed inside the city by the construction of a second wall attached to the facade of the Circus which is known as “Mur Nou” or “Muralleta” ( “New Wall” or “Little Wall”).

From the 15^th and 16^th century narrow houses with two front windows in each floor were built using as foundations the vaults of the Circus.

BUILDINGS IN THE SQUARE

The houses we can now see in the square are mainly from the 19th and 20th century although they have kept the same structure as those of the 15th and 16th century; they were rebuilt to satisfy today’s needs and we can now find buildings with three windows together with others with only two windows.

The buildings usually have three, four or five floors. On the ground floor we can see arches and columns at the entrance or inside the shops, restaurants, bars, ...
The balconies are narrow and all the buildings follow or have the same plan, that of the Roman Circus. Nowadays underneath Plaça de la Font there is a car park.

Map of the buildings on the right and left side of the square

In Plaça de la Font there are two buildings that stand out among the rest: the Town Hall and El Faro (The Lighthouse).

THE TOWN HALL

In 1838 the present Town Hall became the seat of the Local and Provintial Council. The building had been before the convent of the Dominicans and when it became property of the two Councils it was decided to improve its appearance by building a new facade which was designed by architectures Francesc Barba and Francesc Rosell between 1861 and 1865.

The façade represents in neoclassical style different allegories of the local and provincial history. The sculptures and relieves are the work of Bernat Verderol. The materials used are marble, jasper, masonry and rubblework. In the centre, there are four fluted pillars that hold a triangular pediment. At the apex and on top of an acroteo there is Tarragona Coat of Arms. In the centre of the pediment, there is a big medallion with the busts of Publius and Cneo Scipion, the founders of the city of Tarraco. On the right Julius Caesar is represented receiving the assistance of Tarragona citizens and on the left we can see Queen Isabel II. We can also observe the medallions of Emperors August and Adrian who were specially linked to the city. Two niches are opened in the intercolumns at both sides of the main balcony, that has a railing with marble balustrades. In one of the niches we find the statue of St. Oleguer and in the other one that of Robert d’Aguiló who had a crucial role in the Reconquest of the city. The main door of the building was projected from the centre of the square. The main staircase, very beautiful and elegant, is of Greco-Roman style with the stairs and balustrades made of marble and the columns and windows made of polished jasper.

Above the main balcony there is a decorated rectangular hold by two angels that had the name of the square carved in it. On both sides of the upper part of the building there are the busts of illustrious characters of Tarragona city and province. They are: Pau Orosio, Lluís Pons d’Icart, Antoni de Martí i Franquès, Joaquín de Santillán i Valdivieso, Joan Smith i Sinnot, Vicent García i Torres, Pere Virgili i Bellver, Antoni de Gimbernat i Arboç i Pròsper de Bofarull i Mascaró.

Town Hall Façade. Neoclassical style.

Busts of Illustrious Personages in the Town Hall Facade

EL FARO (THE LIGHTHOUSE)

The building known as El Faro, was designed by Salvador Ripoll Sahagún and it is one of the best examples of rationalist style in Tarragona. It is a five storey building with an attic and a tower at the top. On the first floor there is a long bay window and instead of having an angle corner it is rounded.

Rationalist building