Casa Velázquez (Museo de Ambiente Colonial Cubano)

Description:

• The mansion (ca. 1516) that once belonged to Diego Velázquez, founder of the original seven villas in Cuba, still stands despite the unrepentant fumes of tour buses and recent fires that have threatened it. The house has a notable Moorish influence, with a wonderful carved cedar ceiling (most of which had to be reconstructed after a fire). The top floor was the living quarters; the ground floor was the commercial part of the house, where Velázquez maintained offices and horse carriages were kept. The majority of the house's elaborate frescoes have been supplemented by very amateurish reproductions, a real sin against the authenticity that is so apparent elsewhere. The museum aims to depict the varied styles and epochs of colonial life, seen through period furnishings from the 16th to the 19th century. You'll find some splendid pieces of French, British, Spanish, and Cuban furniture; Spanish ceramics; carved chests; and French porcelain. Several dressers have extraordinary inlaid designs, proof of the wealth of the bourgeoisie in colonial Cuba. A second 19th-century house in back, blue, and white, with an attractive courtyard, is not part of the original Velázquez house. Allow an hour for your visit.

• © Frommer's 2013

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Highly Recommended 2010