Casa Dorada

Tarija


With heavy coats of gold and silver paint, the appropriately named Gilded House whose roof is topped with a row of liberating angels looks impressive from afar but less so upon closer inspection. Entry is by guided visits only, which leave on the hour.

Originally built in 1930, one of several properties owned by the wealthy Tarija landowner and merchant Moisés Navajas (often described as Bolivia’s Teddy Roosevelt) and his wife, Esperanza Morales, it's now owned by the university and houses a museum and the Casa de la Cultura.

The museum is on the upper floor, displaying original family furniture and examples of the bits and bobs that they imported from Europe. Perhaps the most worthwhile relic is the funola, an early type of piano that produced music by forcing air through a strip of perforated paper.


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