In Seville is a unique archive, which collects all the information about the history of the colonies belonged to the Spanish Empire in the Americas and the Philippines - Archive of the Indies. The building, which houses the library, was built in the Renaissance style by the architect Juan de Herrera in the period from 1584 to 1598 year. The architect created a project commissioned by King Philip II, who wanted to create a building in Seville for the local guild of merchants. The facade looks rather reserved, the roof is framed by a series of balustrades, obelisks placed at the corners. Finishing the building lasted until 1629.

In 1785, according to the decree of King Charles III was sent here archives of the Council of the Indies, which was caused by the desire to unite in one place a large number of documents containing information about Spain as a large and successful sea power. In order to accommodate all the collected documents previously stored in Seville, Cadiz and Simancas had to convert some building.

Today the Archive of the Indies is truly unique in terms of the completeness and the information contained herein. In total there are 43 thousand volumes stored, and the total length of all the shelves on which books and documents are placed, close to 9 km. It contains a variety of maps, information about the voyages of Spanish sailors, conquered the plans, as well as based on the occupied territories of cities, information about the Spanish conquistador, sea logs and reports of Columbus and more.

In 1987 the building of the Archivo de Indias and the materials stored there, joined the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site.