Today I’m going to tag this opinion piece as “humor” even though there is very little that is humorous about this situation other than how the blood lusting “Vlad Tepes” Putin keeps getting kicked squarely in his assets. This latest situation involving a rigged secession vote, the outcome of which was announced by Pravda three days ago (I kid you not), is deadly serious. Vlad “Tepes” is already threatening to throw a nuclear temper tantrum if other nations do not respect the predetermined outcome. Even enablers Xi Jinping, Narendra Modi, and Recep Erdoğan are starting to distance themselves from this fiasco (welcome to the club, I guess, since all three of you helped create today’s very dangerous situation).
Looking at how the Silk Exchange is surrounded by churches, one supposes that the merchants of Valencia feared for their souls. In a moment I’m going to show you another of those churches, but first we’re going to study the incredible details of the Silk Exchange. Above is the Hall of Columns, and those columns are meant to invoke palm trees. Impressive, for sure. But equally impressive are the bas-reliefs decorating the interior walls:
Silk Exchange bas-relief
Of interest with these examples are the grotesques are seemingly all playing musical instruments.
Silk Exchange bas-relief
Go into the open-air courtyard of the Silk Exchange, find the staircase, and head on up to this consulate rooms for a ceiling nearly as incredible as what you’ll see in the Hall of Columns:
Consulate Room ceiling; Silk Exchange
Heading once again outside, you’ll find lots to photograph in the buildings details. Here is a collection of Silk Exchange gargoyles:
Silk Exchange gargoyle
Silk Exchange gargoyle
Open Wide and Say, “Ahhhh….”
I mentioned earlier that this exchange is seemingly surrounded by churches. This one is on the west side of the exchange, and it is the Church of Saint John of the Market (Església de Sant Joan del Mercat):
Church of Saint John of the Market
Here are a few more photographs of this stunning façade’s intricate details:
Church of Saint John of the Market
Church of Saint John of the Market
Church of Saint John of the Market
See you in two days for anotherFun Photo Friday selection of favorites from this destination.
Decisions — Murder in Paradise
The Globe — Murder in Luxury
R. Doug Wicker — Author 