CASA AMATTLER

This is the first of three houses that have striking Modernista facades and are collectively known as the Manzana de la Discordia. Chocolate manufacturer Antonio Amatller i Costa commissioned Josep Puig i Cadafalch to remodel Casa Amatller into an extravagant home with a neo-gothic facade decorated with sculptures, coats of arms and floral reliefs, and crowned by a stepped gable. Inside the broad entrance-way, the beautiful wooden elevator was one of the earliest to be installed in Barcelona. Note also the amazing carvings on one interior doorway depicting animals making chocolate. To see inside the building you will need to take a guided tour, which includes an opportunity to taste Amatller chocolate.

covered in glazed blue, green and ochre ceramics, representing the scaly skin of the dragon, its knobby roof the dragon's back, the tower the saint's cross and the wave-like balconies the skulls and bones of victims. A visit of the interior gives an insight into Gaudi's designs, and takes in an apartment, the attic and roof terrace.