Saint Augustine House
It is a monument located in the Historic center of Mexico City, on the corner of the streets Republic of Uruguay and 5 of February, (previously streets of Don Juan Manuel and la Joya respectively), it got its name because it was property of the order of the Augustinians, whose convent was located next to this building.
The order of the Augustinians owned several properties in the old Mexico City, besides the convent the Augustinians owned: The college of San Pablo (today Juárez Hospital), the Hacienda of Santa Monica (in Tlalnepantla) the hostel of Santo Tomas de Villanueva (today a boutique Hotel), the hostel of San Nicolas de Tolentino (today property of the UNAM) the Novitiate and its Chapel (In the street Republic of El Salvador), besides several houses in the area of the Historic Center of Mexico City.[1]
The exact date of the construction is not known. The oldest photographs of the building are from late 19th century when the photography was consolidated in Mexico, but the building was constructed during the colonial period at the end of 17th century or the beginning of the 18th century, since it has typical elements of the domestic architecture of that period. but the characteristic that more emphasizes in the facade of the San Agustín House are the Ajaracas: A decoration of Arab origin that consists of mortar lines interlaced to each other forming figures. Those of Saint Agustine house are one of the very few examples of colonial Ajaracas that are conserved in the Historical Center of Mexico City.
In 1924, the building was fully remodelated and 3 floors were added in neo-colonial style, with arches, gargoyles and sculpture of the Virgin of Guadalupe while the interior was decorated with thousands of talavera tiles and iron forged handrails.
In the mid 30's the roof of the building was adapted as a terrace in order to lodge a restaurant. At that time the Art Deco, style was already present in Mexico and its influence can be appreciated in some details of the terrace like the geometrized battlements and the two small domes.
After 1928 the building lodged the Hotel Ontario, which worked until the 80' s, when the zone was deteriorated as a result of the Earthquake of 1985 and the operation of the hotel was no longer viable. After that the building remained semi abandoned, with small offices and stores and even a night club in the mid nineties, until its full renovation to lodge a Hampton Inn and Suites hotel that opened since December 2008.
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Coordinates: 19°25′48.58″N 99°8′5.43″W / 19.4301611°N 99.1348417°W