Calle de Colomer

In La Guindalera, which began to take shape as the eastern extension of the Ensanche in the late 19th century, a developer called Colonia Madrid Moderno built houses between 1890 and 1906 and named its streets after famous surnames. One of them was Colomer. Behind the name stands Narciso Pascual y Colomer (1808-1870), chief palace architect from 1844. His most recognisable work is trodden by anyone passing the Congress: he won the 1842 competition for the Palace of the Cortes and built it between 1843 and 1850. He also designed the Marquis of Salamanca’s mansion on the Paseo de Recoletos, and here the tribute makes almost neighbourly sense, since the marquis was the developer of the adjoining district. A mystery remains. None of the sources describing the neighbourhood’s streets dares to state whom this calle de Colomer honours. The name points to the architect out of sheer local logic, not through any record that confirms it.