La organización de la investigación matemática en España en el primer tercio del siglo XX: el Laboratorio y Seminario matematico de la Junta para Ampliación de Estudios (1915-1938)

The Mathematical Laboratory and Seminar was a research center in mathematics founded in 1915 by the Spanish "Junta para ampliación de estudios e investigaciones científicas" (Council for scientific research). This scientific institution is studied through the Reports published by the Junta every two years. Three successive periods are considered: first, the organization of the Laboratory, in which Julio Rey Pastor (1888-1962) played a main role; second, the 1920s, its period of major productivity and consolidation; and third, the activity during the Spanish II Republic, when several controversies arose, until the disapearence of the Junta in 1938. The main research trends are considered, and the activity of almost all the mathematicians that were trained or collaborated in the Laboratory is described. The scope of the work developed by the Laboratory and the possible success of its attempts to estabish a professional mathematical community are considered. Finally, three appendix – members, visiting professors, and publications – are provided.