The Plaza de Armas of San Juan, formerly known as the Plaza Mayor, is a

plaza de armas ''Plaza de armas'' (pl. ; literally ''arms square'' or ''place-of-arms'') is a Spanish language, Spanish term commonly used to refer to town square, town squares in Latin America, Spain and the Philippines, as well as a name commonly given to th ...

and one of the main squares in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

, the capital of

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. It is located on the Fortaleza and San José Streets in

Old San Juan Old San Juan () is a historic district located at the "northwest triangle" of the San Juan Islet, islet of San Juan in San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan. Its area roughly correlates to the Ballajá, Old San Juan, Ballajá, Catedral, Old San Juan, ...

. Built in 1521, it was designed to serve as both the original main square and

market square A market square (also known as a market place) is an urban square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world. A market square is an open area where market stalls are tradit ...

for the city. San Juan City Hall is located to the north of the square, while the Puerto Rico Department of State lies at the west. The square's main feature is a round fountain with four marble statues representing "The Four Seasons", originally placed in the four corners of the square, which had been commissioned by then governor of Puerto Rico Juan de la Pezuela y Cevallos in 1856 to the "

motherland A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic natio ...

", to be placed in Paseo La Princesa esplanade in Old San Juan.www.places.eyetour.com
Plaza de Armas & La Alcaldía - Retrieved 22/06/2014

Gallery

File:Tramway in front of City Hall in Plaza de Armas, Old San Juan.jpg, Plaza de Armas in 1902. File:Plaza de Armas de San Juan during Christmas.jpg, Plaza de Armas, San Juan during Christmas

"The Four Seasons" fountain

Plaza de Armas fountain - San Juan, Puerto Rico - DSC07111.JPG, Autumn Plaza de Armas fountain - San Juan, Puerto Rico - DSC07108.JPG, Winter Plaza de Armas fountain - San Juan, Puerto Rico - DSC07109.JPG, Spring Plaza de Armas fountain - San Juan, Puerto Rico - DSC07110.JPG, Summer

References

External links

San Juan
on Welcome to Puerto Rico
Historia de San Juan
Tourist attractions in San Juan, Puerto Rico National Register of Historic Places in San Juan, Puerto Rico Squares in Puerto Rico Old San Juan, Puerto Rico National Historic Landmark District contributing properties National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico Fountains in North America 1521 establishments in New Spain 16th-century establishments in Puerto Rico {{SanJuanPR-geo-stub