Very good morning, friends and colleagues of Hive; today I want to show you part of the structure of the so-called Casa Del Vínculo or Las Gradillas, located in the central part of the Capital District, near the most important institutions of the country such as the Mayor of Caracas, Casa Natal del Libertador, La Casa de la Historia Insurgente, Museo Bolivariano and different banking institutions.
WHY IS IT RELEVANT TO SHOW THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE BOND HOUSE?
Historically speaking, the Casa Del Vínculo was one of the residences where the Liberator Simón Bolívar lived and lived with his wife María Teresa del Toro y Alayza in 1802; then in 1810 it was one of the main headquarters of the Patriotic Society, which was in favor of the independence of Venezuela as a single country and territory; This in turn takes more value when by orders of the State is transformed its concept as a place to hold meetings in search of independence to become a printing press editing in the same facilities the well-known Act of Independence in the year 1811.
In spite of the fact that it has been more than 212 years where the external agents of nature have had their way eating away at the walls and part of the floor, it was due to the former president of Venezuela Hugo Chavez and the plan of maintenance, rehabilitation and restoration called Plan Caracas Socialista that this house is still standing as an exhibition open to the Venezuelan and foreign public; with the technology of the XXI century the technological tools have been used to make a general and digital plan showing in video form the complete structure of the years of 1810.
Thus, it is considered as a museum that everyone can visit, since inside the part of the structure that is still standing shows part of what it once was and how it was formerly the architectural model of the time, such as the design that was previously used to give life and color to the interior.
CURRENT NEWS
Currently, only two recovered rooms are available to the public and in free exhibition, where the first one shows very clearly how the structures were in the past; a clear example of this and that is visible at the beginning of the tour is the floor, because it shows certain patterns that although in small sample it is possible to appreciate how they were placed in the past. The first sample is a linear pattern, almost similar to a cane or grill; then follows the classic rhombus or diagonal square seen today in ceramics and yet the first of all were the deposits of earth and stone shown casually in the corners.
In a similar way it happens with the wall; it is known that a wall can be built in different ways and with different materials, for such reason for the XVIII century it is shown that the materials used for the Casa del Vínculo was in part of rock and then this was evolving to the mud bricks that should support the roof and in turn as Zócalo Frieze this should be leveled with the floor.
As for the decoration of the wall it can be observed that in the XX century it was used mostly red wallpaper that over the years became pale pink and currently as a decorative coating was used mustard colored paint.
It is followed by the columns that partly support the structure of the house and provide a great decorative style; these were made in part by mud bricks and stone, which were then coated in such a way that a whitewashed frieze that gave shape as a unique texture was presented.
Finally, in the background is shown a red brick arch belonging to the house in the eighteenth century, where next to it is just part of what was a molding that represents in part the decoration of the relief belonging to the time of the house in the eighteenth century.
EXHIBITION
The first room shows part of what was the discovery and restoration of the Casa del Vínculo, first of all, walls were built using the rafa and tapia technique, that is to say, with the technique of rammed earth between vertical masonry structures.
It was also a great discovery the localization of walled door openings, where it was possible to observe that there were still wooden materials, specifically wooden lintels that showed the different connections between the main hall and the vestibule.
Another important finding was the evidence of what used to be a carpanel arch that was part of the structure leading to the corridor that opened onto the main courtyard of the house.
And as the main objective of this publication is to observe the great architecture of the Casa del Vínculo, as the materials that had been used in ancient centuries and how these were mostly used for the construction of the house, it seemed to me an ideal detail to have on display as it was formerly the complete facade of the Casa del Vínculo from the west point by the Zaguán as the cross sections by the hall in the west area and its longitudinal cut by the south area.
Giving in this way a better idea of how it was built and in part the outstanding elements that made it so unique as its large windows and columns.
On the other hand, although it is not important in the architectural theme, it should be noted that porcelain from the colonial era was also obtained, some in good condition and others simply vestiges of what was once a plate or cup.
In the second room, according to my vision, the vestiges of what was once the internal structure of the house are shown in a perfect way, as well as the materials used. In this case, particularly on the left side, the most interesting thing was to understand that this historic house within its walls there was a space for religious images or called Niche for a religious image and the old wall of tapia and rafa is clearly observed.
The other images show the different wooden lintels that support the structure above or at the top, as well as part of what was the doorway of the eighteenth century.
Unlike the first space, in this one there are large wooden windows of the time of great magnitude, almost the size of an average person.
- Application used for photo editing: PowerPoint // Canva
- Translator used: Link
