One of the first things I noticed as I arrived in Madrid and started exploring the city was the abundance of beautiful, old wooden doors. Not just regular wood doors, but elaborately designed doors, such as the one on the Filmoteca Española as you can see above. The Filmoteca Española is Spain’s national film archive, but the building itself is known as the Palacio del Marqués de Perales, and was built in 1732 by Pedro de Ribera, in a baroque style. I don’t know if this current door is original and dates back to 1732, but it certainly is beautiful.
The door seen below, along with the detail view of its lion knocker, is from a building at Calle de Zorrilla 7. There’s a street-level restaurant to the left of this door, and it appears that the floors above are part of the Hotel Soho Boutique Congreso. I did not go into either establishment, but enjoyed the beauty of their doors as seen from the street.
This next one is located at Calle del Mesón de Paredes, 5, but it’s not clear to me what is located at this address. But look at those elaborate swirls in the center panels with the diamond shaped elements above and below. Again, I wonder how old this door is, and it shows some wear and tear, but it’s just gorgeous.
