arnold_1982

Cebu Heritage Walk

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The Jesuit House of 1730
(Pari-an, Cebu City)

- According to Fr. Rene Javellana, S.J. this is probably the oldest dated house in the Philippines today.









The Jesuit House of 1730 was once the residence of the Jesuit Superior in Cebu. Right now, it is occupied by a hardware owned by the Sy Family.

When the Jesuits were suppressed in Europe and eventually expelled from the Philippines in 1768, several of their properties were put on sale. This particular residence was bought by a Spanish family, the Alvarez. The Sy family eventually acquired it.

There are actually two houses inside the compound both connected with a bridge. The main house, also referred to as “House A” in previous articles about it, is made all of cut coral stone similar to the Augustinian monastery of the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño while the second smaller house (House B) is a bipartite structure of cut coral stone in the lower level and wood in the second level. Both houses still retain the original corbels and stout unhewn wooden posts while the main house still has the original roof made of clay tiles. Iron grills secure the windows at the upper level of House A. A bas-relief medallion bearing the words “Año 1730″ can be found above the portal, in the interior of House A, that leads to the bridge to House B. The flooring on both houses is of hardwood. According to Fr. Rene Javellana, S.J. in his article about this Jesuit residence, House B functioned more of like an azotea where the Jesuits probably spent the afternoon praying alone or was perhaps used for community gathering and recreation. As of now, House B has wooden walls, a ceiling and partitions which were probably just recent additions and not necessarily of 18th century vintage.

Both houses are intact and unlike other structures within or near the Pari-an area like the Casa Parroquial of the Cathedral or the Yap-Sandiego Ancestral House, no major alterations in the structure were recently made. Judging from its condition, this residence can still be rehabilitated to its former grandeur and adaptively reused as a museum similar to what the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. (RAFI) did to the Casa Gorordo which is located just two blocks away.

Chinese influences are very much evident both in the interiors and exteriors. For example, in House B the decorative corbels are very much similar to those found in Chinese temples. At House A, the clay-tiled roof slopes in the same manner as those of Chinese pagodas.


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arnold_1982

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