The Reales Atarazanas (Royal Shipyards) is a waterside building that housed the shipyards, warehouses, customs house and tax offices of the old port of
Santo Domingo
, total_type = Total
, population_density_km2 = auto
, timezone = AST (UTC −4)
, area_code_type = Area codes
, area_code = 809, 829, 849
, postal_code_type = Postal codes
, postal_code = 10100–10699 ( Distrito Nacional)
, webs ...
,
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares with ...
. It was the property of the
Spanish Crown. Begun in 1509, the Atarazanas is the oldest building of its type still standing in
America, and one of a handful remaining in the Spanish world, amongst which are the
Atarazanas Reales de Barcelona, in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, the
Atarazanas Reales de Sevilla, in
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
, the
Atarazanas del Grao in
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
and the Royal Dockyard in
Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. .
The Atarazanas building is part of
Colonial City of Santo Domingo World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
, and after restoration in 2018, today houses the ''Museo de las Atarazanas Reales'', which reopened in December 2019 and exhibits artifacts recovered from
underwater archaeology
Underwater archaeology is archaeology practiced underwater. As with all other branches of archaeology, it evolved from its roots in pre-history and in the classical era to include sites from the historical and industrial eras. Its acceptance has ...
and other artifacts from colonial
shipwrecks around
Hispaniola island and the naval history of the Dominican Republic.
Purposes
In addition to serving as warehouses, the complex also housed the Santo Domingo office of the
Casa de la Contratación, headquartered in
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
. Thus, the Atarazanas also served as the first customs and tax house of the
New World
The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...
. Management was contracted by the Crown to the powerful
Welser
Welser was a German banking and merchant family, originally a patrician family based in Augsburg and Nuremberg, that rose to great prominence in international high finance in the 16th century as bankers to the Habsburgs and financiers of C ...
banking family of Augsburg, which made use of the Atarazanas in their failed endeavor to
colonize Venezuela.
Construction
Construction began in 1509, and ended in 1541. The brick building contains three parallel, barrel vaulted naves of substantial size, although the north nave (which was temporarily given a flat roof) was finally vaulted as a result of a 1972 restoration. The central nave is slightly wider than the two adjoining ones. In the 18th century, the columned entrance portico, which fronts only the first two naves, was added. Its five stone columns support four brick arches of
Moorish influence.
Location
The Reales Atarazanas is located north of the
Alcázar de Colón
The Alcázar de Colón, or Columbus Alcazar is the first fortified European palace built in the Americas. It is located in the Dominican Republic's colonial area of Santo Domingo city, and forms part of the Ciudad Colonial UNESCO's World Heritage ...
in the Colonial City of Santo Domingo. The building in this small neighborhood contained offices and storage spaces where the mercantile activity of the city was carried out, and where the expeditions to the American mainland were stocked with provisions before their departure. The main street is
Calle de las Atarazanas (Atarazanas Street) which begins at the riverside
Puerta de las Atarazanas (Atarazanas Gate), which is believed to have been used exclusively for the Atarazanas.
It was reconstructed in the 1970s and restored between 2014 and 2018 at a cost of million. Today houses the ''Museo de las Atarazanas Reales'' (MAR), which reopened on December 12, 2019 and exhibits artifacts recovered from
underwater archaeology
Underwater archaeology is archaeology practiced underwater. As with all other branches of archaeology, it evolved from its roots in pre-history and in the classical era to include sites from the historical and industrial eras. Its acceptance has ...
and other artifacts from colonial
shipwrecks around
Hispaniola island and the naval history of the Dominican Republic.
El tesoro subacuático es expuesto en el Museo de las Atarazanas Reales
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References
External links
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Buildings and structures in Santo Domingo
Tourist attractions in Santo Domingo