Casa Cautiño is a
house museum in
Guayama, Puerto Rico
Guayama (, ), officially the Autonomous Municipality of Guayama (), is a Guayama barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean coast of Puerto Rico. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 ...
. The museum collection, administered by the
Institute of Puerto Rican Culture, include works of art, wood carvings, sculptures and furniture built by Puerto Rican cabinetmakers for the Cautiño family.
[.] It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
History
The house was owned by Genaro Cautiño Vázquez, a wealthy Guayama landowner as well as a colonel of the
Volunteer Battalion of the Spanish Army. During the
Spanish–American War
The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
, the house was the headquarters for the American forces. After the war, Genaro Cautiño returned to occupy the house. An additional Annex house, for extended family, also once existed next to the Iglesia San Antonio. Also, a tunnel still exists linking Casa Cautiño, the annex house and Iglesia San Antonio.
The U-shaped structure is one-story with an interior patio, which local architect Manual Texidor built in 1887 after graduation from the Academy of Fine Arts in Paris.
It features some of the elements of the
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture, sometimes referred to as Classical Revival architecture, is an architectural style produced by the Neoclassicism, Neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century in Italy, France and Germany. It became one of t ...
style, such as cornices, pilasters,
candelabra
A candelabrum (plural candelabra but also used as the singular form) is a candle holder with multiple arms. "Candelabra" can be used to describe a variety of candle holders including chandeliers. However, candelabra can also be distinguished as b ...
, Roman arches, relief motifs, and classical ornamentation. These elements were blended with some of the details of the popular architecture of the southern area of Puerto Rico that prevailed when the structure was built.
[.]
See also
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Guayama, Puerto Rico
*
List of museums in Puerto Rico
This list of museums in Puerto Rico contains museums which are defined for this context as institutions (including nonprofit organizations, government entities, and private businesses) that collect and care for objects of cultural, artistic, scie ...
References
External links
*
Article about Casa CautiñoMuseo Casa Cautiño
video tour
Historic house museums in Puerto Rico
Cautiño
Neoclassical architecture in Puerto Rico
National Register of Historic Places in Guayama, Puerto Rico
Houses completed in 1887
1887 establishments in Puerto Rico
Furniture museums
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