English version
Hello community of travellers. On this occasion I invite you to take a tour of one of the most interesting museums in the Cuban capital, the Napoleonic Museum, a building located in the Vedado neighbourhood at the intersection of San Miguel and Ronda streets. It is a place that treasures items that belonged to the distinguished French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. At first one wonders: Napoleon Bonaparte in Cuba? As it turns out, no, he never had any links with the island, so how did his possessions get to Cuba? Well, the pieces on display here come from various sources, essentially from the agricultural engineer Julio Lobo, who was one of the richest men in Cuba and a fanatic of Napoleon to such an extent that he had specialists whose job it was to determine the authenticity of the emperor's belongings that came into his hands. Other influential members of the collection were Orestes de Ferrara, colonel of the Liberator Army, diplomat and journalist who was also the first inhabitant of the building; and Dr. Francesco Antommarchi, who was the emperor's family doctor. The museum contains 7,400 personal objects, weapons and works of art connected with the French emperor, and was founded on 1 December 1961. It is considered by many to be the most extensive and varied public display of Napoleonic-era artefacts in existence today.
The eclectic style building of the Napoleonic Museum, which was built as a commission from Ferrara, is characterised by its design inspired by the Renaissance palaces of Florence, as its owner was Italian.