() is a building in the center of Barcelona. It was designed by Antoni Gaudí, and is considered one of his masterpieces. A remodel of a previously built house, it was redesigned in 1904 by Gaudí and has been refurbished several times after that. Gaudí's assistants Domènec Sugrañes i Gras, Josep Canaleta and Joan Rubió also contributed to the renovation project. The local name for the building is (House of Bones), as it has a visceral, skeletal organic quality. It is located on the in the Eixample district, and forms part of a row of houses known as the (or , the "Block of Discord"), which consists of four buildings by noted architects of Barcelona. Like everything Gaudí designed, is only identifiable as or Art Nouveau in the broadest sense. The ground floor, in particular, has unusual tracery, irregular oval windows and flowing sculpted stone work. There are few straight lines, and much of the façade is decorated with a colorful mosaic made of broken ceramic tiles (). The roof is arched and was likened to the back of a dragon or dinosaur. A common theory about the building is that the rounded feature to the left of centre, terminating at the top in a turret and cross, represents the lance of Saint George (patron saint of Catalonia, Gaudí's home), which has been plunged into the back of the dragon. In 2005, became an UNESCO World Heritage Site among the other Works of Antoni Gaudí, and is visited by people from around the world. History Initial construction (1877) The building that is now was built in 1877, commissioned by Lluís Sala Sánchez. It was a classical building without remarkable characteristics within the eclecticism traditional by the end of the 19th century. The building had a basement, a ground floor, four other floors and a garden in the back. Batlló family The house was bought by Josep Batlló in 1903. The design of the house made the home undesirable to buyers but the Batlló family decided to buy the place due to its centralized location. It is located in the middle of , which in the early 20th century was known as a very prestigious and fashionable area. It was an area where the prestigious family could draw attention to themselves. In 1906, Josep Batlló still owned the home. The Batlló family was very well known in Barcelona for its contribution