ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES

The building of the seminary has two façades: one that looks to the San Ignacio street, just opposite to the beginning of the Tejadillo street, and the other one that faces the Cuba Tacón street (former San Telmo street).

The modest facade on the San Ignacio street has a Churrigueresque style. The Churrigueresque style is marked by extreme, expressive and florid decorative detailing, normally found above the entrance on the main facade of a building. The facade looks like a three-level altarpiece, with polygonal pillars and pilasters. Above the entrance, there are two priest statues, placed in niches. The windows are irregularly distributed on the facade. Despite all the negative effect of the time and the weather conditions, the details of the coat of arms of Spain are still quite visible. A shield with the famous sentence of Varela is hung on the wall: “no hay patria sin virtud, ni-virtud con impiedad (there is no country without virtue, nor-virtue with impiety). The shield was hung during the visit of Pope John Paul II to Cuba in 1998.

The imposing façade on the Cuba Tacón street was built in 1950s. It has a Baroque style. In fact, it was inspired by the motifs of the facade of the Cathedral of Havana, overlooking tha fact that the facade did not clash with the rest of the building on the San Ignacio street. On both sides of the entrance, there are the busts of José Agustín Caballero and Félix Varela. Both were the unflagging fighters of the formation of the Cuban nationality. The tranquil courtyard (maybe the most tranquil courtyard in the city) is sorrounded by columns, arches and galleries. The gallery on the first floor is constructed on single columns, whereas the second floor rests on double columns; a feature that was unique in the architecture of Havana at the time. The galleries on the third floor are supported by wooden piers. The curved staircase with the stained-glass window looks rather magnificient.