What a job!

Ever wonder what an underwater archeological dig looks like? This diorama at the Museum of the Filipino People gives us a glimpse. The excavation site is in shallow waters near the shore, however, so barrel rafts rather than a ship could be used.

Green glass

The Museum of the Filipino People, an archeological and ethnographic museum, is located in what used to be the Philippine government's Finance Building. Built in 1926 in the neoclassical style, it suffered extensive damage during WWII and was reconstructed soon after. It underwent renovation again in the late 1990s to early 2000s when the museum was moved into the building, and one section is covered in distinctly modern plate glass windows.

Chalkboard

An illustration of prehistoric man and animals on a wall at the Museum of the Filipino People helps children—and adults—make sense of fossils.

The first cross

The "Planting of the First Cross" by Philippine National Artist for Painting Vicente S. Manansala (b. 22 January 1910, d. 22 August 1981) is a cherished part of the National Museum's visual arts collection. From the museum's notes:

The painting depicts the planting of the cross in Cebu in 1521 with Ferdinand Magellan, Spanish soldiers and the natives with intricate tattoos known as pintados. The original cross can still be found in a special kiosk in Cebu City. This mural painting is one of the best representations of historical artwork in the collection. Manansala’s rendition is an amalgamation of the traditional and modern techniques in painting. It also manifests his mastery of transparent cubism. The artwork was commissioned by the national government in celebration of the 400 years of Philippine Christianization held in Cebu in 1965.

Crossing over

Known as the Manunggul Jar after the name of the cave in the province of Palawan where it was found, this burial jar was dated to 890–710 BC. Aside from the fact that it was found intact, it is remarkable for the incised decoration on its body and lid, colored with hematite, and the two figures on a boat on the lid. This is believed to represent souls sailing to the afterworld, a particular crossing over belief that is common—with slight variations—in many cultures all over the world. The Manunggul Jar is considered a national treasure and is housed in the Museum of the Filipino People. It also appears on the back of our one thousand peso bill.

Didn't stop them

I had to wait a bit before getting the photo of the Museum of the Filipino People which I posted the other day because of this group of young people who were having their own photo shoot. The entrance to the museum is at the back of the building because it is nearer the National Art Gallery, and these stairs are cordoned off by a rope with signs that say "No Entry."

Grand pastel

Last year, I was able to post some detail shots of the old Finance Building, which is now the Museum of the Filipino People. Here is the facade in its entirety. The building has since gotten a fresh coat of creamy yellow paint which, according to arts advocate and heritage conservationist John Silva, was its original color. They discovered it by carefully peeling away all the layers of paint that its walls and columns had accumulated over the decades. And no, it's not curved and I don't know why my photos of wide buildings usually end up like this.

Details

These are the magnificent friezes, columns and chandelier in the main lobby of the National Art Gallery of the Philippines, which used to be the Legislative Building of the country. I know that the architectural details have been there since the early 20th century, when it was built during the American Colonial Era. Unfortunately, I do not know anything about the chandelier, not even whether it is old or new. If I may hazard a guess, I think it's both. The main chandelier looks like an antique but the organic glass shapes and curvy rods with balls at the end are a newer addition. In fact, the addition reminds me so much of Filipino artist Impy Pilapil's work. What do you think?



If I ever find out, I'll let you all know, of course.

P is for Pilipinas

Before the Spaniards came and conquered the islands in the 16th century, our ancestors in the big island of Luzon already had a written language. Called Baybayin, it was the alphabet of the spoken Tagalog and Kapampangan languages, and shares its origin from the ancient Brahmi script of the Indian subcontinent with many other Asian languages. After more than four centuries of colonial rule, however, we no longer use Baybayin regulary and very few people can write in it with any facility. But the logos and abbreviations of many of our government institutions still use the alphabet's individual letters. The logo of the National Museum of the Philippines is the Baybayin "P" in the middle of a stylized sun. This rendition in marble is on the floor of the main lobby of the National Art Gallery.

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Reminding all CDP bloggers yet again: our theme for September 1 is Open-air Markets (so difficult for me!) and the poll is ongoing for the October theme. Please vote and help spread the word!

Sweeping

The Philippine National Art Gallery, the home of Juan Luna's Spoliarium, is a 1916 American colonial era building which used to be the Philippines' Legislative Building, just as the building of the National Museum of the Filipino People used to be the Finance Building. This is the Legislative Building's elegant marble spiral staircase with wrought iron banisters and a softly gleaming wooden handrail. I just wish the gallery staff didn't keep supplies and trash under the stairs, even temporarily.

Porcelain and artillery

The San Diego was a 16th century galleon, a three-masted trading ship built in 1590 in the province of Cebu by Spanish, Chinese and Filipino shipbuilders. It used different kinds of Asian woods and was about 35–40 meters (115–130 feet) long, 12 meters (39 feet) wide and 8 meters (26 feet) high. It had at least four decks and could hold about 700 tons of cargo.




In November of 1600, the San Diego was refitted by the Spanish colonial government to help fight Dutch corsairs who were preying on ships entering Manila harbor. The battle took place in December and resulted in a draw, with one Dutch ship, the Mauritius, catching fire, and the San Diego, which was still laden with cargo and overloaded with the added artillery and ammunition, sinking.




Antonio de Morga, who led the Spanish fleet and survived to write about the attack in his book Sucesos de las islas Filipinas in 1609, only mentioned that the San Diego sank somewhere south of Manila Bay.




It was not until 1991 that the San Diego wreck was discovered off the town of Nasugbu in the province of Batangas. In 1992, the galleon was excavated with the help of hundreds of people of different nationalities and the support of the Philippine, French, German, Spanish and American governments.




To date, the San Diego shipwreck is the Philippines' most important underwater archeological discovery. Of the more than 30,000 artifacts found in the shipwreck, 5,000 are now in the Museum of the Filipino People. The artifacts include Chinese porcelain, Japanese swords, European cannons, helmets and astrolabes, and Mexican coins. Understandably, the San Diego collection is one of the museum's most extensive and important exhibits.

Ancient methods

When the Spaniards arrived in our islands in the 16th century, they discovered indigenous peoples that were well-organized into independent villages called the barangay (which is still the word we use for the smallest unit of our government). The word comes from the Austronesian word for sailboat, balangay or balanghai, a prehistoric wooden sailboat used by many of the island peoples of Southeast Asia and Oceania.




In the 1970s, nine of these balangay were discovered off the coast of Butuan City in the province of Agusan del Norte by archeologists of the National Museum. Only three have been excavated so far. One is still being reconstructed; the older of the other two, dated at 320 CE, is displayed in a museum in Butuan. This one is the third, dated at 1250, and is in the maritime hall of the Museum of the Filipino People. Only a few pieces of the boat survived its centuries-long immersion but the museum reconstructed a large part of the hull so visitors can better appreciate what it looks like.




Last year, a group of Filipino adventurers from the teams that scaled Mt. Everest in 2006 and 2007 decided to recreate a balangay using the same wood and construction methods that our ancestors would have used, and sail it using only the navigation methods available to the earliest mariners. The first voyage will be in Philippine waters, the second will be around Southeast Asia, and the third—the most ambitious of all—will be to sail to Madagascar. They are currently in the middle of the ninth leg of their ten-leg Philippine journey. If you're interested in their adventure, you can visit the Voyage of the Balangay website or follow them on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Artistic temperament

We've all heard about how artists of all kinds can be very emotional and temperamental. It probably isn't true of many artists, but by all accounts, it was true of Juan Luna (October 23, 1857 – December 7, 1899), the painter of yesterday's Spoliarium. Born in the town of Badoc in the province of Ilocos Norte, Luna was discharged from one art school in Manila because he refused to follow what his teacher wanted, and he left another in Madrid because he didn't like their teaching style. He married Maria de la Paz Pardo de Tavera in 1886 and they settled in Paris. Only six years later, Luna, in a fit of jealousy, killed his wife and mother-in-law, and wounded his brother-in-law. This small sketch of Juan Luna hangs in the Luna and Hidalgo Gallery of the National Art Gallery, where the Spoliarium is also located. I now forget if this was a self-portrait or drawn by an artist friend. It was done in Rome in 1879, before the Spoliarium and before the marriage, and he does not yet have the handlebar mustache of his later portraits and photos.

The painting that launched a revolution

The Spoliarium of Juan Luna (October 23, 1857 – December 7, 1899) is perhaps the most famous painting in the Philippine National Art Gallery. Measuring 4 meters high and 7 meters wide, Luna entered the painting in the 1884 Exposición Nacional de Bellas Artes in Madrid, where it won a gold medal. John Silva, writer, museum consultant, and advocate for the arts and heritage preservation, describes the Spoliarium thus:

The painting’s brooding dark canvas exudes tragedy. The scene is the exit room of the Roman Colosseum called the Spoliarium, hence its name. The injured and dying gladiators are being dragged in. To the far right, a woman is half-sprawled on the floor, with her back turned to us. We do not see her face, but her crouch, her hands seemingly to her face, her head bowed and despondent, reveals only sorrow. To the far left we see Romans cheering on the next batch of gladiators in this blood-letting sport. It is barbarism captured on canvas…

In the same 1884 Madrid exhibition, another Filipino artist, Felix Resureccion Hidalgo, also won a second place silver medal for his painting Virgenes Cristianas Expuestas al Populache (Christian Virgins Exposed to the Masses). Both paintings were seen as a critical allegory of Filipinos under the yoke of Spanish colonial rule. During the celebration of this double victory several weeks later, Jose Rizal, who was close to both artists, gave a toast congratulating them and proceeded to declare a manifesto of Filipino political equality with their colonial masters. It was because of this speech (collected in the book "20 Speeches that Shaped the Nation" selected and with introductions by Manuel L. Quezon III) that Rizal came to be branded a rebel by Spanish authorities, and it was also soon after this speech that he began writing "Noli Me Tangere." And thus was the road paved that would lead Jose Rizal to Bagumbayan for his execution and his proclamation as a national hero.

One final note about the Spoliarium: Since 1885, the painting was in Barcelona, having been bought by the provincial government for 20,000 pesetas. In 1937, it was sent to Madrid for restoration after it was damaged during the Spanish Civil War. In 1958, General Francisco Franco gifted the painting to the Philippines and it was shipped to Manila in three pieces. It was unveiled in the Department of Foreign Affairs in December 1962.

Obviously, my photo does not do the painting justice. Despite having darkened much since Juan Luna first painted it more than a century ago, standing in the same room as the gigantic (both in size and historical significance) Spoliarium is still an awesome experience.

Smooth Corinthian

The National Museum of the Philippines is currently housed in two neo-classical buildings in the City of Manila. The archeological artifacts comprise the Museum of the Filipino People collections, housed in the former Finance Building which I've featured several times in the past. The National Art Gallery is in the former Legislative Building right across the street. Both were designed principally by Filipino architect Antonio Toledo who was influenced by the city plan originally formulated by American architect and urban planner Daniel Burnham. The columns of the two buildings are almost exactly alike—they have the same capitals but unlike those of the Finance Building, which are fluted, the shafts of the Legislative Building's columns are smooth.

Stoop

I've already shown several photos of the historic building of the Museum of the Filipino People. Now, let's finally step inside (yes, they allow photos of the exhibits as long as you don't use a flash). The museum is the repository of much of the archeological treasures discovered all over the Philippines, hence the name. One of the first things you will see upon entering the museum is the garden in the middle, which has a replica of a traditional Ifugao house. The Ifugao are one of several tribal peoples who live in the Cordillera mountain range north of Metro Manila (it is also the name of the province where they live). The thickly thatched roof shelters the entire house down to the level of the raised floor, necessary in the rains and cold weather of the mountains. This means that one has to stoop or squat to get to the ladder which leads to the doorway.



Inside the museum, there is a model of another Ifugao house, which has as many varieties as there are Ifugao sub-groups. The model is not accurate in its use of materials, however. Bamboo slats will not provide much shelter from the cold winds that blow throughout the Cordilleras.



If you want to see the colorful handwoven traditional dress of the Igorot, the generic term used for the six distinct ethno-linguistic groups of the Cordilleras including the Ifugao, the tourists we saw at Mines View Park in Baguio City last year wore them for their souvenir photo.

Grand entrance

I've already shown you the colonnade and porch of the Museum of the Filipino People, which used to be the government Finance Building. Now let's step inside and see its beautifully restored grand entrance hall.



Each doorway in the hall is topped by an arch with a stained glass window featuring the seal of the Department of Finance and the coat of arms of the Republic of the Philippines.



Here is a closer look at one of the stained glass windows featuring only the seal of the Department of Finance. I couldn't find any information about it so I don't know what they all mean, but the elements include the sun rising above a pair of marine lions holding a shield containing balance scales and a key. Under and around the marine lions (also a symbol of the City of Manila) is a scroll and three stars which represent the three major geographic areas of the country: Luzon (where Metro Manila is), Visayas and Mindanao.



Some of the stained glass windows can also be seen from the hallway of the second floor, where they are protected by more of the beautiful black iron grills that we saw at the porch.


To appreciate both the architecture and exhibits of the National Museum of the Philippines, especially if you're a first-time visitor, I highly recommend the museum tour of John Silva. Aside from his vast knowledge about architecture, history, art and archeological artifacts, he also has an insider's stories about the restoration of the buildings, the hard work required to breathe life into its musty halls and exhibits, and the struggle to preserve the heritage of the Filipino people.

Black iron

These are the doorways and windows of the Museum of the Filipino People just off the porch created by the colonnade which I posted on Monday.



I really like the beautiful ironwork of its many windows. The sculpted ornamentation on the walls and ceilings are quite simple but still pretty.



The plaques under the wall lamps identify the people involved in the reconstruction of the building, formerly the Finance Building of the Philippine government, which was completed in 1950. They feature the coat of arms of the Republic of the Philippines and lists foremost the President under whose term the building was reconstructed: Elpidio Quirino. Tiny lettering carved into one corner of the metal identifies the maker of the plaques: Crispulo Zamora & Sons, Art Sales - Manila.

Neo-classical Corinthian

Built in 1940, the former Finance Building in the City of Manila was designed principally by the Filipino architect Antonio Toledo, who received his training at the Brooklyn Institute of Technology, Ohio State University and Cornell. Toledo was a member of the Bureau of Public Works, the agency which was in charge of the construction of all government buildings during the American colonial era. He also designed the Manila City Hall. Heavily damaged during WWII, the Finance Building was rebuilt after the war by the construction and engineering company of A. M. Oreta. In 1998, it was renovated again in time for the Philippine centennial, this time to house part of the collection of the National Museum of the Philippines. That part was the museum's collection of Philippine archeological artifacts and what used to be the Finance Building is now the Museum of the Filipino People.



This post is dedicated to our good friends Vic Oreta, one of A. M. Oreta's grandchildren, and his wife Cecile.