Pasig City Museum

Pasig City Museum
Pasig City Museum
General information
Status	active
Type	Mansion
Architectural style	Art Deco
Address	Plaza Rizal, San Jose, Pasig
Completed	1937
Inaugurated	2001
Renovated	1980s
Owner	Don Fortunato Concepcion
Technical details
Floor count	3
Design and construction
Architect	Arch. Felizardo M. Dimanlig
Awards and prizes	Best Local Museum 2009
Website
Pasig City Museum Facebook page

Coordinates: 14°33′39″N 121°04′34″E / 14.5609°N 121.0762°E

The Pasig City Museum is a historic house museum in Pasig, Metro Manila in the Philippines. The museum is housed in the old Concepcion Mansion, owned by the former mayor of Pasig, Don Fortunato Cabrera Concepcion who served from 1918 to 1921. This magnificent structure was built as a gift to his wife, Victoria Concepcion. A native of Pasig, Architect Felizardo M. Dimanlig, designed this Spanish-Baroque mansion and completed it in 1937.^[1]Today, the museum showcases the timeline of the history of Pasig, as well as collections of objects corresponding to periods of historical development of Pasig. It is located in the poblacion area, at one end of Plaza Rizal, in Barangay San Jose.

Architecture

The three-storey mansion's design was inspired by the Neo-Castillian style of architecture. It has a terra-cotta roof which makes the mansion one of the three remaining structures in Pasig that uses the material. Its interior was designed in an ornate revivalist style fashionable during the pre-war era. Fifteenth-century wooden flooring, which originally came from the old Pasig Cathedral were used in the mansion and remained intact until now. There were marble flooring and stairs as well. It has an azotea, where one can see the Pasig Cathedral, facing the mansion.

History

Family History

Photo of the Mansion during the 1950's

Before the mansion was completed, the former mayor's wife died. The couple had three children, namely Cristino, who had two children; Cristina, who died at an early age, and Jose who married "Naning" but had no child. Cristino's children were Cristino II and Vina Concepcion who married Luis Gonzales.

When siblings Cristino II and Vina died, the childless couple Dr. Jose Concepcion and "Naning" were the last heirs of the mansion. The mansion was then bought in the 1980s by the municipal government of Pasig under the administration of Mayor Emiliano Caruncho. It was transformed into the Pasig Library and Museum.^[1]

Other Significant Events

Commonwealth Era

During the early Commonwealth period, President Manuel L. Quezon visited the Concepcion mansion to drink pure carabao's milk and had some non-political conversations with Don Concepcion. Later that evening, the former mayor and his men became President Quezon's followers.

World War II

The place where the American flag was hoisted

During the World War II, the mansion was used by the Japanese as their headquarters and detention center. On February 19, 1945 the American and Philippine war flag was raised at the veranda below the tower of the mansion to signify the liberation of Pasig from the Japanese forces.^[1]

Renovations

The Concepcion Mansion was renovated and inaugurated as the Pasig City Museum in 2001 and has been a venue for exhibits, presentations, musical performances, art workshops and book launchings.^[2] In 2008, another renovation was done on the interiors to transform it into a full-blown museum. Some of the antique furniture still remains. The garden was transformed to a hall where presentations and workshops are held.

Gallery

• 

  History of the Museum

• 

  Window

• 

  Lobby

• 

  Mermaid Statue

• 

  Flooring from the Old Pasig Cathedral

• 

  Marble Stairs

• 

  View from the Azotea

• 

  Stairway to the Rooftop

References

1. "Sightseeing". Pasig City Government Official Website. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
2. "First ever Philippine Photo Festival to start this May". Inquirer Lifestyle. Inquirer.net. Retrieved 31 May 2014.