The Regional Department of Culture and Cultural Heritage has presented the first phase of the cultural and museum project for heritage content to be developed at the Casa Torres, an 18th-century building in the heart of the historic centre of Teguise, recently acquired by the Government through direct award.
It is the first building of historical value that the Government's culture department has acquired in Lanzarote, with the aim of creating a multipurpose cultural and heritage space, such as a museum, an art gallery and other uses linked to cultural activities.
Regarding the museum project, "taking into account the singular architectural features of the house as well as the movable items preserved inside it", this historic space lends itself to "the dissemination of the heritage values of both the island and the Canary Islands as a whole", said Nona Perera, director general of Cultural Heritage.
So far, the Government "has drawn up an inventory of the assets held in the stately home, including furniture, ceramics and ethnographic elements such as water cisterns, ovens, and so on", among other safeguarding measures. In addition, "those items requiring intervention to prevent their loss or deterioration are being restored", Perera explained.
"It is a project that will encompass different disciplines, starting from the concept of cultural landscape by including the tangible and intangible elements that define it as a living, dynamic, interactive research centre", in short, as "an archive of Canarian memory", was how Perera defined it.
For Barroso, "the Casa Torres is one of the most singular buildings in one of the finest historic centres preserved in the Canary Islands".
In fact, "the last owner of the house kept many of the movable items, which is a great advantage for beginning the process of turning it into a museum", Barroso explained. Thanks to her contributions and to written sources, "we gradually put together a document on the historical and architectural interest of this building, which the Government has used to justify its purchase".
Once the house has been fully restored and "the museum project is defined and up and running, it will be a source of pride for Canarians who visit it", Barroso concluded.
The Casa Torres is a building included within the Historic Ensemble of Teguise, declared a Site of Cultural Interest in 1985, and it is individually recognised for its heritage values, having been included in the Architectural Catalogue of the municipality's General Urban Development Plan with full protection status.