Ciudad Colonial (Santo Domingo): Difference between revisions

'''Ciudad Colonial''' (Spanish for "Colonial City") is the historic central neighborhood of the [[Dominican Republic]]'s capital [[Santo Domingo]]. It is the [[List of cities in the Americas by year of foundation|oldest continuously inhabited]] European-established settlement in the [[Americas]]. The area has been declared a [[World Heritage Site]] by [[UNESCO]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/sites/526.htm |title=ArchivedColonial copyCity of Santo Domingo - UNESCO World Heritage Centre |access-date=2007-05-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517154529/https://whc.unesco.org/sites/526.htm |archive-date=2008-05-17 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It is also known as '''Zona Colonial''' (Colonial Zone) or more colloquially as "La Zona" (The Zone).

[[File:Nave Norte Catedral Primada CCSD 05 2019 5530.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Interior view of [[Cathedral of Santo Domingo|Santa María la Menor Cathedral]]]]

The central public space of the district is [[Parque Colon]], a square that borders the 16th-century Cathedral and has a late-19th-century bronze statue of [[Christopher Columbus]] in its center. East of Parque Colón, the [[cobblestone]] Calle Las Damas is the New World's oldest paved street, dating from 1502. The street is bordered by many of the zone's more prominent landmarks, including [[Ozama Castle|Fortaleza Ozama]], the site of major events in Dominican history; Casa de Bastidas, which now houses a children's museum; the French Embassy, in a building said to have been the house of [[Hernán Cortés]]; the Casa de Ovando, said to be the former residence of Governor [[Nicolás de Ovando]] and now a luxury hotel callcalled [https://hodelpanicolasdeovando.com/en/ Hodelpa Nicolas de Ovando]; the [[National Pantheon of the Dominican Republic]]; and the [[Museo de las Casas Reales]], in the former governors' palace and [[Royal Audiencia of Santo Domingo|Audiencia]] building.

A 700 million US dollar investment was made in the Port of the Ozama river adjacent to the Ciudad Colonial aiming to turn Santo Domingo into a [[Port#Port of call|port of call]] for luxury cruise ships and including a privately owned marina. The project is being completed by Sans Soucí Ports S.A.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.seaportspr.com/viewir.cgi?newsletter_id=96&article_id=3219 |title=ArchivedSeaports copyPress Review |access-date=2007-10-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412012802/http://www.seaportspr.com/viewir.cgi?newsletter_id=96&article_id=3219 |archive-date=2008-04-12 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It is hoped that this ambitious project will boost the attraction of the Ciudad Colonial and the rest of Santo Domingo to international tourists.

[[File:Puerta del Conde, buitenplein 1.JPG|thumb|190px|Gate de la Misericordia in the Zona Colonial.]]

[[File:Ruinas Iglesia Ruinas San Francisco CCSD 01 2021 6913.jpg|thumb|190px|Ruins of the [[Monasterio de San Francisco]], the oldest [[monastery]] built in the Americas.]]

[[File:Dominican Republic Neighborhoods.jpg|thumb|190px|Colonial Dominican Republic neighborhood of Padre Bellini.]]

[[File:Dominican Republic Neighborhoods Street View.jpg|thumb|190px|Colonial zone, Dominican Republic neighborhoods.]]

* [[Alcázar de Colón]], first castle or viceroyal residence in the Americas. Today houses a 22 rooms museum.

* Calle de los Nichos or del Arquillo chico, previously Calle del Mono in the XVI-XVII and Calle de los Polancos in the 18th century, today calle [[Arturo Pellerano Alfau|Pellerano Alfau]], which is a pedestrian street. Both the Casa de Diego Caballero and the Campuzano Polanco are located in this street.

* Casa de [[Juan Martínez de Ampiés|Juan de Ampies]], founder of the city of [[Coro, Venezuela|Coro]] and first Governor of Venezuela, next to the above (turned into one single house today), later became the residence of Genoese merchant Melchor Centurione, business partner of Juan de Villoria, today part of the FDD as well.

* Casa de "El Tapado", built by Dean Pedro Duque de Rivera in the middle of the 16th century. Takes its name from the legend of one of its residents who only came out at night. The legend says he was a Spanish noble with a disfigured face.

* Chapel del Rosario inside the Church and Convent of the Dominican Order, also known as the Chapel of the Zodiac, built by the Campuzano Polanco family in early 18th century. The only one of its kind in America and one of the four vaults with astrological representations that exist today in the world.

* Church Las Mercedes, once the residence of [[Tirso de Molina]] between 1616- and 1618 and probably where he wrote part of his works

* [[Museo de las Casas Reales]], before the Palace of the [[Real Audiencia of Santo Domingo]], today a museum with 9 rooms on the colonial history of the island considered one of the best in the Caribbean.

* Museo de la Catedral, previously was La Carcel Vieja in colonial times (The Old Jail), then became the theater of the [[La Trinitaria (Dominican Republic)|Filantropica society]]. Today houses a museum of religious objects from the Cathedral of the 16th to 19th centuries.

* Museo [[Larimar]], museum about a gemstone only found in this island, located in the Isabel La Catolica street,

== Works Citedcited ==