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Stories of Sol

Puerta del Sol · Madrid

Stories of Sol

The living memory of the square: the history of Puerta del Sol and the New Year's Eve chimes tradition.

The Puerta del Sol in Madrid in an old 19th-century photograph

History of the Puerta del Sol

From medieval gate to the symbolic centre of Madrid: the history of the Puerta del Sol, its great 19th-century renovation, the arrival of transport, its monuments and its role as a gathering place.

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The newly renovated Puerta del Sol, photographed by Charles Clifford around 1862

The great renovation that created the Puerta del Sol

The 1857-1862 renovation that created today's Puerta del Sol: the competing designs, the demolitions, Lucio del Valle's arc of buildings and the cost of the new square.

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The old Puerta del Sol with the church of the Buen Suceso and the Mariblanca fountain in a 1790 engraving

Why It Is Called Puerta del Sol

Puerta del Sol was once a gateway into medieval Madrid, decorated with a sun. Discover how that vanished gate gave the square its name.

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Puerta del Sol in 1885, with historic cafés on the ground floors of its buildings

The Cafés of Puerta del Sol

During the 19th century, Puerta del Sol was a grand salon filled with cafés. The story of the Café Universal, the Café de la Montaña and the cafés of La Fonda — places of tertulia, press and politics.

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Historic facade of Casa Labra on calle de Tetuán in Madrid

Casa Labra, a tavern beside Sol since 1860

History of Casa Labra, the century-old tavern beside the Puerta del Sol known for its cod, its croquettes and the 1879 founding meeting of the PSOE.

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Puerta del Sol at the beginning of the 20th century, crossed by trams, horse-drawn carriages and rails, with the clock tower of the Casa de Correos in the background

From Stagecoaches to the Metro

A history of transport in Puerta del Sol: stagecoaches, hired carriages, the railway, trams, the Metro, buses and Cercanías, from the old crossroads to the pedestrian square.

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The entrance pavilion of the Sol Metro station designed by Antonio Palacios in 1919

Sol station and the pavilion of Antonio Palacios

The history of Sol station since the Metro's inauguration in 1919: Antonio Palacios's entrance pavilion, the three lines, the Cercanías commuter rail and the vanished whale.

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The Puerta del Sol in 1773, with the Mariblanca fountain at its center

The fountains of the Puerta del Sol

History of the fountains of the Puerta del Sol: the Mariblanca, the Canal de Isabel II fountain, the fountains of 1951 and 1986, and the current Charles III fountain.

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Close-up of the Losada clock on the tower of the Real Casa de Correos

The Losada Clock and the New Year's Eve Chimes

History of the Losada clock, the mechanism that has crowned the Real Casa de Correos since 1866, and of the Puerta del Sol's New Year's Eve chimes: the origin of the twelve grapes and their broadcast on radio and television.

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