Mail
Map
Architecture and Urbanism
Entre Rios' Government House in the city of Parana
The building is a typical example of civilian architecture of the 1880’s, thought as some sort of European palace.
The city of Parana was declared capital city of the province of Entre Rios in 1883. At that moment, the government of General Racedo plans the construction of a building centralising the Executive and Legislative Powers.
The construction plans, as well as the budget and conditions presented by the Architect Bernardo Rigoli, Chief of the Topographic Department, were approved on July 20, 1885. The big respond supporting the balconies was placed by the end of 1887.
Two very defined tendencies stand out, the baroque and the Italian Renaissance, providing the building with an eclectic style in the end.
Bernardo Rigoli employed, from the baroque, a series of concepts such as the “moving wall”, a façade full of symmetric in-going and out-going movements.
The Italian Renaissance is seen in the treatment given to the outside windows: in those cases in which two windows are close to each other, they are finished by a half-point arch that is itself part of a bigger arch. In a similar way, the galleries of the inside courtyards, are formed by a series of half-point arches which rest on columns which are finished off by Tuscan capitals.
A tower with a clock stands out above the symmetry axis of the façade.
The Honour courtyard, the White Hall, the Agreements Hall and the Legislative room have not been altered.
The government house of the province of Entre Rios was declared a national monument in 1986.
Clock Tower
The retail of the clock on the tower of the building is also part of the baroque style. Due to the development in clockmaking in the European continent, a “clock fashion” takes place during the 18th century.
Augusto Zetner, clockmaker from the province of Corrientes, ordered the construction of the clock to Benedicto Schneider Schonach, a German clockmaker; and later combined all the details of the mechanism and placed the complete work in the tower that was completely constructed under his command. Bochum, a German bell-maker, fabricated the bells.
The inauguration took place on May 1, 1887, being the first clock of its type in Argentina. The steel bells were the second to be imported in Argentina.
It has the curiosity of repeating the time 3 minutes after having reproduced it for the first time. A person is in charge to give the clock a wind every 24 hours. The clock is completely original.
White Room
Emilio Carafa’s painting “The crossing of the Parana” can be seen in this room, representing the crossing of the Parana River by the army lead by General Justo Jose de Urquiza on its way to defeating Juan Manuel de Rosas in Caseros Battle. Urquiza is the main character of this painting, surrounded by Virasoro, Lamadrid, in a white horse, Mitre and Major Chenoud.
The painting was inaugurated on May 1st, 1897, in the anniversary of Urquiza’s Pronunciation against Rosas of May 1st, 1851.
About this article...
Author of the article: Grondona Olmi, Verónica
Sources employed:
- “Monumentos Históricos de la República Argentina. Comisión Nacional de Museos, Monumentos y Lugares Históricos. Secretaría de Cultura y Comunicación. Presidencia de la Nación” (Historical Monuments of the Argentine Republic. (National Commission of Museums, Monuments and Historical Places. (Secretary of Culture and Communication. Presidency of the Nation). Year 2000. Page 70.
- "El País que no Miramos" ("The Country we have not Seen"), a series of documentaries for television produced by Ivan Grondona. Archivo General de la Nación ("Argentina's National Archive"). Video 45, Programme 4.
Translated by: Veronica Grondona
If you liked this article, you may also be interested in…
Forclaz Mill, Colon, province of Entre Rios >>
Parish of Our Lady of Carmen, San Jose del Rincon, province of Santa Fe >>
Salta’s Townhall, province of Salta >>
Saldungaray's Cemetery, province of Buenos Aires >>
Argentine Club, Bahia Blanca, province of Buenos Aires >>