The Palacio de la Exposición is a building on Colon Avenue in

downtown Lima Lima is a district of Lima Province in Peru. Lima district is the oldest in Lima Province and as such, vestiges of the city's colonial era remain today in the historic centre of Lima, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 and ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

. It was constructed in the 19th century with the Park of the Exposition to house the International Exposition of Lima in 1872. Since 1957, it has been home to the

Lima Art Museum The Lima Art Museum (Museo de Arte de Lima) is an art museum in Lima, Peru. The museum is located in the Palacio de la Exposición. The museum was inaugurated in 1961. The collection includes ceramics and textiles. MALI is a private organization s ...

History

The building was constructed in unison with the Park of the Exposition and was ordered built by president Jose Balta in 1869 for the international exposition that was to take place in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

in celebration for fifty years of

Peruvian independence Peruvians ( es, peruanos) are the citizens of Peru. There were Andean and coastal ancient civilizations like Caral, which inhabited what is now Peruvian territory for several millennia before the Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest in th ...

. The construction of the building took place between 1870 and 1871. The building is of a neo-Renaissance style and was designed by the Italian architect Antonio Leonardi. Its design was considered a pioneer of its time in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

as it was one of the few buildings constructed of steel. In July 1872, both the palace and the park were inaugurated and the exposition took place soon after. After the exposition, the palace was home to the Society of Fine Arts. During the

War of the Pacific The War of the Pacific ( es, link=no, Guerra del Pacífico), also known as the Saltpeter War ( es, link=no, Guerra del salitre) and by multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought ...

the building was looted. After the looting it was used as a hospital and later a garrison for the

Chilean army The Chilean Army ( es, Ejército de Chile) is the land arm of the Military of Chile. This 80,000-person army (9,200 of which are conscripts) is organized into six divisions, a special operations brigade and an air brigade. In recent years, and a ...

. In 1889, the

Peruvian government , border = Central , image = , caption = Logo of the Government of Peru , date = 1990 , state = Peru , address = Government Palace , leader_title = President of PeruWhile there is ...

ceded the building to the Municipality of Lima. In 1905, the building became home to the

National Museum of History The National Museum of History (NMH; ) is located in the Nanhai Academy in Zhongzheng District, Taipei, Taiwan. After the Republic of China government moved to Taiwan, the National Museum of History was the first museum to be established in Taiwa ...

and the Ministry of Public Works. Later, throughout different time periods, it was used by the Chamber of Deputies, the Direction of Traffic, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Municipality of Lima.

Art Museum of Lima

In 1954, the Municipality of Lima ceded the building to the Patrons of the Arts civil association for refactioning and remodeling to convert it into an art museum. The

( es, Museo de Arte de Lima) opened in 1957 while its official inauguration took place in 1961.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Palacio de la Exposicion Art museums and galleries in Peru Cultural infrastructure completed in 1872 Museums in Lima Neoclassical architecture in Peru Palaces in Peru World's fair architecture in South America