THE GROUND FLOOR

The Sala Ambientada (Ambience Room) is the first room, located at the right side of the entrance. The next room, the Sala Heráldica (Room of Heraldry) is designed to show the importance of the heraldic symbols for the Cuban nobility. Some certifications of weapons, military orders, banners that were hung on the balconies on special days, are preserved in this room.

The next four rooms on the ground floor are reserved for the horse carriers; they were used also as stable. In these rooms four different models of horse carriages are exhibited. In the first Cochera (Garage) you will find the quitrin, the lightweight, single-axe carriage, pulled by horses. It was very popular in Cuba at the beginning of the 19th century. In the second Cochera two examples of the brake (in French, break) are exhibited. Such kind of carriages of English origin from the 19th century, have four wheels, drawn by single horse or in teams of two or four. It has a high seat upon which the driver sits. It has a capacity for a greater number of people. In the last Cochera you will see the phaeton, a four-wheeled, doorless, open and quite light horse carriage that was popular due to its sporty design in the late 18th and early 19th century. In a showcase the saddle and the stirrup, designed for a female, are displayed. There are some other showcases also in that various personal belongings and the hardware used in the palace are exhibited. At one corner, you will see a grinder. The walls are decorated with a pennant of Havana and a canvas portrait of a woman, the member of the family Balboa (anonymous work).

In the Sala de Ferrocarril (Room of Railway) you will see the miniature model of the steam locomotive, manufactured by Cagney Brothers in the USA in 1905. It is exhibited as the remembrance of the first locomotive that had circulated between Havana and Bejucal, starting from the Villanueva station on November 19, 1837. The model of this jewel of the Cuban railway heritage belongs to the family Loynaz del Castillo. The office desk of the chief of the train station with the antique cable phone and the cylindrical hat, forms the nostalgic corner of the room.

The cart with the name of La Flor del Cerro (Flower of the Hill) in the Sala de Comercio Ambulante (Travelling Sales Room) was used for the sale of charcoal. Some related objects, such as a cowbell, a portable stove and a pair of espadrilles are exhibited on the cart. In the same room, the 19th century fire engine, manufactured in London, is on display.

After the stone road sign (Señal de Camino) you will reach the Sala Parroquial Mayor (Great Parish Room) that contains the masterpieces of the oldest churches in Havana, as well as the archeological remains, found during the excavations on the land of the old church Parroquial Mayor that was standing in this area before the construction of the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales. By this way you will have the opportunity to have a short look at the history of the Christianity on the island.

The wooden pew in the first room of the Great Parish Room belongs to the Catedral de la Habana. In the same room the golden plated monstrance is from the 17th century and ornamented with red corals. A rather big crystal, embedded at the top, in the form of the sun, is glancing. It is escorted by two candlesticks that are made of the same material. The monstrance and the candlesticks were made in Palermo, Italy. The silver crismera, the jar with the lid, destined to keep the Holly Oils and the Chrism, is from the 19th century. The three wooden seats and the silver wall sheeting behind them are from the 18th century and belong to the demolished Convent of Santa Catalina de Sena. The anonymous oil portraits of the bishops Santiago Echeverría y Elguezúa Villalobos, and Diego Evelino de Compostela, are hung at the wall. A Spanish vestment, made in Cuba, is also on display.

The huge wooden candlestick in triangular shape and the polychrome statue of the Christ, are the most striking objects, exhibited in the second room of the Great Parish Room that is bigger than the first. With the bleeding wounds on his body, the statue of Christ highlights to the humility and the patience. It is from the 18th century and belongs to the Convent of San Juan de Letrán.

The showcases are full of masterpieces of silversmiths of the 18th and 19th century, such as the bible with the silver cover, the silver crucifix, the big, silver blandones (candlesticks) and the silver sanctuary. Except the bible, the rest are the gifts of Juan Lazo de la Vega y Cancino, the bishop of the Iglesia Parroquial Mayor (1732-1752). On the ground you will see the bronze plaque that is commemorative of the founding of the Colonial French Louisiana by Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville (El General Dom Pedro Berbila). He died (perhaps of yellow fever) in Havana in 1706 and was buried in Catedral de la Habana (Cathedral of Havana).

At the end of the room, there is the commode of sacristy, made of mahogany, with nice carved drawers. The drawers were used usually to store the vestments of the priests of the church. It belongs to the Church of San Agustín in Havana. Two silver-plated candlesticks and four silver floróns, produced by Misa brothers, are placed on the commode. A florón is an adornment made as a very large flower that is used in architecture, or a sculpted ornament that represents a leaf or a flower, particularly in the Gothic style. They belong to the Cathedral of Havana. The anonymous oil painting of San Gennaro with the angels is hung over the commode on the wall. The silver bowl to serve fruits is another masterpiece of the museum. It is from the 17th century and belongs to the Parroquial Mayor. The anonymous oil portrait at the wall, painted in 1788, shows the bishop Santiago Echeverría y Elguezúa Villalobos placing his hand on the head of a child during blessing. Towards the exit you will see the shield of Francisco Fleix y Soláns, the bishop of the Cathedral of Havana.