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Ancestral houses of the Philippines or Heritage Houses are homes owned and preserved by the same family for several generations as part of the Filipino family culture. [1] It corresponds to long tradition by Filipino people of giving reverence for ancestors and elders. Houses could be a simple house to a mansion. The most common ones are the "Bahay na Bato". Some houses of prominent families had become points of interest or museums in their community because of its cultural, architectural or historical significance. [2] [3] These houses that are deemed of significant importance to the Filipino culture are declared Heritage House by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), previously known as the National Historical Institute (NHI) of the Philippines. [4] [ self-published source ] Preservation is of utmost importance as some ancestral houses have come into danger due to business people who buy old houses in the provinces, dismantle them then sell the parts as ancestral building materials for homeowners wishing to have the ancestral ambiance on their houses. [5] [ self-published source ] These ancestral houses provide the current generation a look back of the country's colonial past through these old houses. [6]
In 2009, the Congress of the Philippines passed the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009 or Republic Act. no. 10066 to further the protection the cultural treasures of the country which include houses under Built heritage. Ancestral houses that are declared Heritage House by the NHCP are still owned by their owners. The government is only declaring the heritage value of the structure, provide funding for its protection and preservation. [7] Ancestral homes that have figured in an event of historical significance like the Bonifacio Trial House in Maragondon, Cavite, [8] or houses of national heroes of the Philippines like the Juan Luna Shrine [9] in Badoc, Ilocos Norte are included among the categories National Shrines or National Historical Landmarks. [10] [11] Historical markers are placed on the houses by the commission to indicate their significance. [12] The Philippine Registry of Cultural Property registers all cultural properties of the country. [11]
Partial list of ancestral houses declared as Heritage Houses by the NHCP, some with declaration dates, grouped according to the regions in the country. [13] many are of Bahay Na Bato architecture.
In the Ilocos Region the historic city of Vigan is the best preserved Spanish Colonial settlement in the country. It was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999.
In Central Luzon, There are two historical town centers declared by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines as historic town centers in the region namely the Malolos Heritage Town in Bulacan [14] declared on August 15, 2001, and San Fernando Heritage District in Pampanga declared in 2004. [15]
Malolos Heritage Town NHL
San Fernando Heritage Zone
The central part of Metro Manila was heavily bombed in World War II destroying historical structures and homes. Somes pockets of old homes can still be found in Binondo and Quiapo which were not affected by the war. [16]
In the Calabarzon region, the center for ancestral houses can be found in the streets of Taal, Balayan, and Calaca, in Batangas and Sariaya in Quezon provinces. The town center of Pila, Laguna, with its Spanish and American-era houses, was declared a National Historical Landmark in 2000.
Declared Heritage House in Mimaropa region.
In Tabaco, Albay, the Manalang Gloria ancestral house, formerly the Smith, Bell and Company House, is a prominent heritage house.
In San Pascual, Masbate, the ancestral house of Lazaro family is the oldest existing and the biggest house.
The Western Visayas region contains the largest number of ancestral homes in the Philippines.
Iloilo City is known as the "City of Mansions", having the most number of Heritage Mansions in the country.
Silay in Negros Occidental has the most number of declared Heritage Houses in the country.
Heritage Houses in Central Visayas region:
Heritage Houses in the Eastern Visayas region:
Heritage Houses in the Northern Mindanao region:
Partial list of ancestral houses declared as National Shrine or National Historical Landmark by the NHCP: [10] [13]
Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan, is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on August 15, 1578, and part of the Metro Luzon Urban Beltway Super Region. This province is a part of the Greater Manila Area.
Jaro is a district in Iloilo City, Philippines, located in Iloilo province, on Panay Island in the Western Visayas region. It is the largest district in terms of both geographical area and population, with 130,700 people according to the 2020 census. It is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Jaro, which encompasses the provinces of Iloilo, Guimaras, Antique, and Negros Occidental, as well as the center of the Candelaria devotion in the Philippines.
Molo is a district in Iloilo City, Philippines, located in the province of Iloilo, on the island of Panay in the Western Visayas region. It is the most densely populated district in the city. According to the 2020 census, Molo has a population of 76,393 people, making it the second-most populous district, after Jaro.
Villa de Arevalo, commonly known as simply Villa or Arevalo, is a district in Iloilo City, Philippines. It is the westernmost district of Iloilo City and shares its border with Oton to the west, in the province of Iloilo, on the island of Panay in the Western Visayas region. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 55,476 people.
The architecture of the Philippines reflects the historical and cultural traditions in the country. Most prominent historic structures in the archipelago are influenced by Austronesian and American architectures.
Lacson is a Filipino surname with deep historical roots originating in the provinces of Iloilo and Negros Occidental, and with branches extending to Cavite and Pampanga. They are a prominent family involved in business, politics, real estate, and agriculture. The surname "Lacson" is a transliteration of Spanish orthography from the Chinese-Spanish name "la̍k-sun." Derived from the Hokkien language, it combines 六 and 孫 which can also be spelled as Laxon and Laczon by the Spaniards.
Don Catalino Rodriguez Ancestral House, also known as Villa Sariaya, is one of the three houses declared by the National Historical Institute of the Philippines as Heritage house in Sariaya, Quezon. It was owned by Don Catalino Rodriguez, Sariaya’s town Presidente from 1908 to 1909. The house occupies an entire block near the church park. Its main entrance faces south along Calle Daliz and is bounded by Calle Rizal on the west and Quezon Avenue on the east. This house has already been transformed into a Museum and visitors can choose to wear period costumes for reasonable fees and pose for souvenir photos. Don Catalino Rodriguez Ancestral House is listed as one of the Ancestral Houses in the Philippines, under Region IV-A.
The Bernardino Jalandoni Museum, also known as the Bernardino Jalandoni House, located along Rizal Street, Silay City, in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines, is the original residence of the late Don Bernardino and Doña Ysabel Jalandoni. The museum is also known as the "Pink House" because of its conspicuous pink paint that easily grabs attention.
The Cesar Lacson Locsin Ancestral House is a heritage house known to be the home of El Ideal Bakery, the oldest bakery along Rizal and Eusebio Streets, National Highway, Silay, Negros Occidental, Philippines. The bakery is known for its guapple pie and several other local delicacies and sweets.
Calle Real, officially named as J.M. Basa Street, is a historic street located in the old downtown district of Iloilo City Proper in Iloilo City, Philippines. It is home to several fine examples of luxury American-era neoclassical, beaux-arts, and art deco buildings. The street has been famous since the Spanish era and once served as the city's main shopping center for more than a century.
The Mercado Mansion is a heritage house located in Carcar, Cebu, Philippines. It is a two-storey bahay-na-bato painted Mediterranean blue owned by the Mercado clan along Cebu South Road. It was declared a Heritage House by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines in 2009.
The Lacson Ruins are the remains of the ancestral mansion of Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson and Maria Braga Lacson. It is situated in Talisay, Negros Occidental, Philippines. The mansion was built in early 1900s and inspired by Italian architecture.
Báhay na bató, also known in Visayan languages as baláy na bató or balay nga bato, and in Spanish language as Casa de Filipina is a type of building originating during the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. It is an updated version of the traditional bahay kubo of the Christianized lowlanders, known for its use of masonry in its construction. It uses stone and brick materials, and later synthetic concrete, rather than just organic materials of the former style. Its design has evolved, but still maintains the bahay kubo's architectural principle, which is adapted to the tropical climate, stormy season, and earthquake-prone environment of the whole archipelago of the Philippines. It fuses bahay kubo's archetecture with the influence of Spanish colonizers. It is one of the many architecture styles throughout the Spanish Empire known as Arquitectura mestiza. The style is a hybrid of Austronesian and Spanish architecture; and later, with early 20th-century American architecture, supporting the fact that the Philippines is a result of these cultures mixing. Its most common appearance features an elevated, overhanging, wooden upper story standing on wooden posts suported by a rectangular foundation. The posts are placed behind Spanish-style solid stone blocks or bricks, giving the impression of a first floor. The ground level contains storage rooms, cellars, shops, or other business-related functions. The second floor contains the living areas as it is with the bahay kubo. The roof materials are either Spanish-style curving clay tiles or thatched with leaves. Later 19th-century designs feature galvanization. Roof designs are traditionally high pitched and include gable, hip, or a traditional combination of both. Horses for carriages are housed in stables called caballerizas.
Philippines National Historic Landmarks is a registry of historic sites in the Philippines that have been officially declared by the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property.
Camiña Balay Nga Bato, formerly known as Avanceña House, is a 159-year-old bahay na bato in the Arevalo district, Iloilo City, Philippines. It was built in 1865 and was designed by the first parish priest of Molo, Anselmo Avanceña, for Don Fernando Avanceña and his wife, Eulalia Abaja. It was then passed on from one family to another until it came under the Camiñas family.[1] It is now owned by the fourth generation of the original owners, Gerard Camiña, former director of the Land Transportation Office in Western Visayas, and his wife, Luth Camiña. The ancestral house was declared as an Important Cultural Property by the National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) in 2015.
The Yusay–Consing Ancestral House, originally known as the Lacson–Yusay Ancestral House, and now popularly known as the Molo Mansion, is a neoclassical-art deco heritage house located in the district of Molo, Iloilo City, Philippines. It is located in front of the Molo Plaza and Molo Church. Built in 1926, it has neoclassical and subtle art deco features.
Iloilo City is a conglomeration of former cities and towns in the Philippines, which are now the geographical or administrative districts (boroughs) composed of seven: Arevalo, City Proper, Jaro, La Paz, Lapuz, Mandurriao, and Molo. All administrative districts are divisions of the lone congressional district of Iloilo City, and each is composed of barangays (barrios), with a total of 180 city barangays.