At the time of its revamp in 1850, Spain's lower house of parliament was given a neoclassical facade, complete with two lions standing guard at the entrance. These imposing statues had been smelted from cannons used in the country's African wars in the mid-19th century, and when they were mounted outside the building, a cheeky Madrid newspaper commented, ‘And what mouths they have! One might imagine them to be parliamentarians!’