MUSEO COLONIAL CHARCAS

In 1570, the Office of the Inquisition was established in Charcas, in the building known as the "Casa del Gran Poder". Dating from the first half of the 17th century, it illustrates a local version of the Mannerist or post-Renaissance architecture of that period. Located on the corner of the street, the building has a façade highlighted by two arches. These arches create a kind of external chapel in which the green cross, symbol of the court of the Inquisition, was probably installed. Inside, in the main body of the building located on a podium above the patio, arches can be seen on three sides. Restored after the earthquake of 1948, the Casa del Gran Poder houses the Museum of Charcas. It has 23 exhibition rooms and most of them are dedicated to religious painting.

Museum of Colonial Art. Located on the first floor of the first building, it has been operating since 1939. It exhibits rich paintings from the colonial period, divided into ten themes or moods. Several schools are present, such as the Italian school, with F. de Trevisano and notably his Piedad; the school of Cuzco and Quito, with paintings by anonymous artists; the Flemish school, with paintings by F. Faurchault or Wolfroet; the French school, with a binding in champlevé enamel from Limoges. Among the works of Bolivian artists, we can see paintings by Perez Holguin (Saint Matthew, Saint John the Evangelist, Birth of the Virgin); Gamarra (The Magdalene); Castro and A. Villaroel. The contemporary art section is quite rich, ending with a collection of portraits of former presidents of Bolivia. Walking through the rooms, one can also admire beautiful pieces of furniture: cabinets, carpets, manuscripts, numerous embroidered, carved and gilded pieces, etc. All the collections of this museum were gathered by the Athenaeum of Fine Arts of Chuquisaca. It was donated to the University in 1957.

Anthropological Museum. This museum, founded in 1944, is located in the large hall on the second floor. It is divided into three sections: archaeology, folklore and ethnography.

In the archaeology section, a collection of pieces belonging to the presto, puno, yampara, mojocoja, ina, yura, turupaya, chaqui, uruquilla and sauces cultures is exhibited. There are also ceramics and rare stones.

In the ethnography section there are deformed skulls, mummies, objects made with feathers and used by the tribes of the Bolivian Oriente, ceramic pieces, textiles, indigenous inscriptions from the Andean zone, dolls dressed in the typical clothes of each region, pieces from the pre-inca cultures of the Altiplano, etc. In the folklore section, the showcases house models of folkloric dances and masks.

Collection of the Princess of La Glorieta. This collection, begun in 1902, is located on the second floor of the second building. It includes two hundred European and colonial paintings by Perez Holguin, Caraval, Herrera, Valverde, and others. You will also see furniture, including wooden secretaries and writing desks from the Chiquitos missions. The entire collection was originally acquired by the Banco Central and later donated to the University. In the same building is the modern art gallery, which exhibits paintings from the Republican period and the 20th century.