The Vegueta neighbourhood of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is home to the Casa de Colón.

a big house from the sixteenth century. One of the most recognisable structures in the city is this public centre, which was established in 1951 by the Cabildo de Gran Canaria's Department of Culture, Historical Heritage, and Museums. It investigates, studies, and disseminates information about American and Canary Island history. In addition to temporary spaces for classes, seminars, conferences, exhibitions, films, concerts, etc., it features a museum, library, and study centre.

The building's current shape was created by fusing together several homes, one of which is the alleged former Governor's House, which Christopher Columbus is said to have visited in 1492 to request assistance in restoring La Pinta. Numerous initiatives have been made since 1950 to conserve 16th-century buildings. The House is a must-see in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria due to its adaptations and original features.

There are 13 permanent galleries and two courtyards at the museum. There are significant ceilings, arches, and columns. The 16th-century Santo Domingo convent's destroyed Gothic well curbstone and lovely Renaissance arches may be found in the courtyard.

The Atlantic journey and the discovery of the New World were aided by technological advancements and the new ideas of the Renaissance man. These facts are shown in the numerous rooms through models, panels, and artefacts. Reconstruction of the Admiral's chamber, emblems, nautical charts, tools for navigation, and routes. 5 Strategic outpost and base for New World experimentation

It was no accident that Columbus travelled through the Canaries. The archipelago's westward movement is aided by the trade winds and ocean currents. All missions restocked here before crossing the Atlantic. From that point forward, the archipelago and America underwent social, cultural, and economic transfer. The islands served as a rest stop and a point of emigration for those travelling to the Indies. The Canary Islands gained the moniker "Maker of Peoples" as a result of families moving there from the Old World. U.S.-Canary Islands ties are still solid.

Information exhibits on American settlement, cultural zones, Pre-Columbian peoples, and modern anthropological material are supported by three collections in the crypt.

Figures that are zoomorphic and anthropomorphic, seals, and burial trousseau artefacts are also part of the museum's collection.

Visitors can find Gran Canaria by using the scale model of the island and old atlases of the archipelago in the chamber. The Las Palmas de Gran Canaria chamber uses urban plots, models, and visual documents to show how the capital developed from the 15th to the 19th century.

Due to the archipelago's sugar trade with Flanders, four Flemish tables from the 16th century stand out.

American paintings from the 18th century include The Coronation of the Virgin by José de Páez and The Infant Jesus of Nazareth by the Cuzco school.

The 19th-century masterworks include the portrait of Carlos Mara Esquivel and genre paintings by Ferdinand Heilbuth, Manuel Cabral, and Eugenio Lucas Velázquez.

Canarian artwork from the 19th and 20th centuries completes the display.

Library

Canary Islands and American history library. Columbus history is particularly well-represented in the 25,000-volume collection.

education and culture

Events are planned all year round by the Casa de Colón to preserve, explore, and share its collection. It arranges training sessions, educational workshops, didactic suitcases, guided tours, themed temporary exhibitions, instructional notebooks, and teacher resources.
Researchförderung

Colloquia Canarian-American

Research on the Canaries' history and ties to America is promoted via the twice-yearly Canary-American History Colloquiums. Francisco Morales Padrón has been their leader since 1976. These gatherings are a reflection of recent research on American-Canary Islands relations.

Caribbean Yearbook

Since 1955, there have been 54 issues and 800 articles in Anuario de Estudios Atlánticos. Antonio Rumeu de Armas founded it, and Antonio de Bethencourt Massieu is in charge of running it.

Relaciones Canarias-América, Canarias-América Prize, Viera y Clavijo

The Viera y Clavijo Research Prizes, the Special Canary Islands-America Prize, and the Canary Islands-America Research Grants all support research.

lectures, classes, and conferences

The Casa de Colón also conducts non-permanent events including conferences, workshops, and seminars that focus on important historical topics and encourage reflection on contemporary culture and history while promoting the Canary Islands' prominence in the Atlantic.

Pérez Galdós International University in the Canary Islands

The Casa de Colón housed this Cabildo Insular endeavour. It was established in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in 1962 and became regulated in 1971. inspired by Santander's Menéndez Pelayo International University. Instead of teaching traditional degree fields, these "summer" universities offered short courses designed to update and broaden students' knowledge as well as provide the general public with a selection of subjects to improve their education. This centre provided Spanish language and culture, humanities, and science to foreign visitors. Manuel Alvar and Alfonso Armas Ayala started it in 1962. The University Reform Law and the 1989 restructuring of the Canarian university system did away with it.