This curious complex of buildings, dating from the late 14C, enjoyed a splendid past, and once hosted Christopher Columbus, who prepared his second voyage to the Americas here. In the 19C, Napoleon's troops made Cartuja into a barracks, then Charles Pickman acquired it to house a ceramics factory, which was in operation from 1841 to 1982. Restored for the 1992 World Fair, today the building houses the Andalusian Centre for Contemporary Art.