Casa de Colón

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The Casa de Colón

The Casa de Colón is a house in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria . It now houses a museum whose main theme is Columbus and his travels.

In 1478 Juan Rejón , the conqueror of the island of Gran Canaria , founded today's city of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The government buildings were concentrated around the area of ​​the present cathedral. The Casa de Colón was the governor's house. In 1492 Columbus visited the house on his trip to America when he landed on the island to repair one of his ships. The building did not get its present form until the 1950s. Parts of the old governor's palace such as the richly decorated portal were integrated into the building.

The House

The courtyard
Exhibition room with the ship models of Columbus' first expedition
Replica of the captain's cabin of Columbus

The museum has fifteen exhibition halls and two courtyards. The larger courtyard is equipped with a Gothic fountain and has a renaissance style arch and a wooden balustrade from the Dominican monastery that was destroyed by pirates in the 16th century . The exhibition halls are decorated with wooden Canarian coffered ceilings .

The museum

Columbus and his travels are the focus of the museum. On the ground floor there is the exhibition about himself, the Canary Islands , historical maps and navigation instruments . On the first floor, paintings and exhibits on the history of Gran Canaria and the city of Las Palmas are presented. In the basement, the crypt, the museum shows a collection of art and everyday objects from pre-Columbian peoples of Latin America.

Columbus and his travels

Memorial plaque on the Casa de Colón

In two exhibition rooms the museum gives a historical overview of the journeys of Columbus . Models of his caravels ( Niña , Pinta and Santa Maria ), nautical charts and boards with the routes of the individual trips are presented. There is also a replica of his captain's cabin here.

The Canary Archipelago

There are exhibits from the Canary Islands from the time of Columbus. These islands were a stopover on the way to the New World. Here provisions and equipment for the journey across the Atlantic were loaded. Many repatriates came from the islands.

America before the discovery

In the exhibition rooms there are around 160 original pieces, mainly figurative representations of animals and people and other grave goods, the culture of the Esmeraldas from the site on the island of La Tolita in Ecuador . Other exhibits, often reproductions, show objects from the Mexican cultures of the Mayas , Aztecs and Zapotecs . The cultures of the Amazon are represented by Yanomami everyday objects from the 20th century.

History of Las Palmas

Here is a model of the island. Historical maps of the archipelago are also on display. Models and maps are shown showing the development of Las Palmas from the 15th to the 19th century.

Paintings from the 16th to 20th centuries

A selection of paintings from the Prado and the Casa de Colón is shown. Pictures by Annibale Carracci and Guido Reni are exhibited. There are also works by Canarian artists from the 19th and 20th centuries.

Others

There's an America library in the house. A documentation center and a teaching department are also located here. Entrance to the museum has been paid for since March 2013.

Web links

Commons : Casa de Colón  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 28 ° 6 ′ 5 ″  N , 15 ° 24 ′ 51 ″  W.