Casa de José de Alencar
The Casa de José de Alencar in Mecejana , Ceará , is a literary museum run by the Federal University of Ceará for the Brazilian novelist José de Alencar .
history
The site of the former Sítio Alagadiço Novo , acquired as a private residence by José Martiniano de Alencar, father of the writer and governor of Ceará, in 1826, was bought in 1966 by the first rector of the Federal University of Ceará and placed under monument protection in 1968. Alencar was born on his parents' country estate in 1829 and spent part of his childhood there until the family moved to Rio de Janeiro in 1838 after his father became a senator. Today the place is a district of Fortaleza .
buildings
The former manor house, Casa grande , has not survived. Of the earlier buildings, there is only a small one-story house built in 1826, called Casinha , with a brick floor and lime plastered walls. It has four rooms, including a living room, bedroom and a kitchen. In 1970 a two-storey building was built next to it, in which, in addition to the museum administration, there is a museum of anthropology , the Pinacoteca Floriano Teixeira with 32 paintings based on works by Alencar, and the Biblioteca Braga Montenegro . In 1980 a restaurant was added. There are also living spaces for scientists who want to carry out research projects there.
Archaeological evidence
In 2000, archaeologists from the Federal University of Pernambuco examined the site, mainly the ruins of the former manor house and the remains of the first steam-powered sugar cane press from Ceará, imported from France. During the excavations, around 10,000 fragments of dishes and objects of everyday use were found, as well as the foundations of two older sugar cane presses.
exhibition
In the literature museum, a copy of Alencar's baptism certificate, a floor plan of the manor house, excerpts from his novels and a chronology of his literary work are shown. An archive and a museum for all of Ceará's writers are to be added later, and a memorial for Alencar with a research library is to be set up.
literature
- Guia dos bens Tombados do Ceará , Fortaleza 1995.