Hear the Echoes of Time at Museo de las Casas Reales

First floor

On the first floor, the museum's collections are categorized by theme in the different rooms. Down a long gallery, you'll find artifacts from the native Dominican Taínos.

You'll also see the equipment used to sail the long distances from Europe to the Americas, with maps depicting the historical layout of the region, and representations of the ships that were used.

The conquest, colonization, and evangelization of the island are depicted in paintings, and along the way, gaining an understanding of how pirates worked in the Americas. There are also artifacts from the Taíno and African enslavement in the Dominican Republic.

Spain’s initial interest in La Hispaniola was the gold its inhabitants were rumored to wear, and Columbus’s first order of business on arrival was to coerce the Taíno people into mining for gold to export back to Spain. As the brutal industry expanded the Taíno population suffered, and African slaves were brought to Hispaniola to labor in the gold, sugar, rum, and Cacáo industries.

The Dominican Republic gained independence from Spain in 1821, and today Dominican companies own most of their own sugar production, and the government receives taxes from the gold industry.

Second floor

On the second floor is located the room that contained the justice tribunal, and expositions on the legislation of the colony and family life. There are also government offices and an arms room.

One of the collections in the arms room is from the 20th-century dictator Rafael Trujillo, placed by one of his successors, Joaquín Balaguer when he turned the site into a government museum in 1973.

Just around the corner from Las Casas Reales, the wide-open Plaza de España receives thousands of locals and tourists to see the Alcazar de Colón (Columbus Alcazar), the first reinforced Spanish palace of La Hispaniola.

La Catedral Primada de America is the first Catholic cathedral to be edified in the New World, right next to Parque Colón, and only a 5 to 8-minute stroll from the museum. That's if the view from the promenade doesn't stop you.

Two blocks east of the Catedral Primada is the Fortaleza Ozama (Ozama Fortress) on the banks of the Ozama River, where Spanish lords and viceroys were housed for safety circa 1502.

The Museo de las Casas Reales is located on the corner of Calle las Damas Calle de las Mercedes in the Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo. Entrance to the museum costs 100 pesos (foreigners included) and includes audio guides that translate the meaning of the museum into English and other languages. The museum is open 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM daily, except Mondays.

Written by G. Abdullah.

Published June 2020