Tour the Pedro de Osma Museum of Colonial Art

To really understand a culture, we cannot leave out knowing its art through history. It is important to appreciate the ideas, customs and past fashions, to understand the present. An entertaining way to learn about a culture is to visit museums, depositories of evidence of a country’s development through time.

Located in avenue Pedro de Osma 423, at the traditional, ancient and charming district of Barranco, we find a warehouse of memories of life and colonial customs in Perú, the Pedro de Osma Museum of Colonial Art.

It carries the name a Peruvian man with a vocation for the arts, which entice him to convert his own house into a place of obliged visits for foreign high dignitaries, interested in appreciating his collection of paintings which he personally showed and described to his visitors.

Today his house still receives Peruvians and foreigners, and there we find sculptures, furniture, textiles, engravings, books, as well as silverware of diverse colonial periods. Seasonally, you can find diverse artists’ exhibitions. But here we will tell you which exhibition halls you should not miss:

In the paintings hall you will find works of art that date back to the XVI through XIX centuries. What is interesting is that it is not art made only in Lima – the Peruvian capital- but also made in other places in the interior like the departments of Cuzco, Arequipa y Cajamarca.
The aesthetic overflow you will find in the silverware hall includes jewelry as utensils that were used by both religious and civilian authorities.

The furniture hall is another artistic element that reflects the culture of the period. You will be surprised to find furniture that is very well conserved.

On the other hand, there is art that can be observed not only in textiles, jewelry, furniture or sculptures but also there is access to books dated back in 1600 like the Koran in a fantastic library where you can take a dive.

Visits are made Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a 6 pm, including holidays. To visit the museum on Monday an appointment must be made calling (511) 467 02 66. Personally I recommend avoiding visits on weekends, because of the large number of people.

Entry tickets cost 10 nuevos soles and include a tourist guide, both in English and Spanish.
You can also visit the restoration shop where you can observe the process the experts execute to conserve all the elements shown to the public.

Likewise, do not miss visiting the “Bistrot Café Provence” that is opened during the same schedule and offers French and Spanish dishes. The gourmet menu costs 30 nuevos soles.

Here you can see a video about the Pedro de Osma Museum of Colonial Art:

Image: Webshots travel

Tour the Pedro de Osma Museum of Colonial Art4.852

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