San Jose de Orosi Religious Art Museum
 
As a result of colonial Christianity, Costa Rica inherited a very strong spiritual sense. One proof of this spiritual sense is Orosi’s Church and its Religious Art Museum, which is going to be 85 years old as a National Monument, next April the 13th.

The Museum and the Church were built at the end of XVIII century by the Franciscan Priests. And these edifications have become a symbol of the colonial age. The property is made of adobe, a stone mixture, sand and lime. The exterior is not too decorated, but the inside is completely baroque, with sculptures and altarpieces made of incised and painted wood.


Religious Art Museum

This is one of the biggest treasures that is owned by the Orosi’s Church. The property is located next to the temple, a place that used to be a Franciscan Abbey. It was built on 1743.

The Museum was opened on 1980 and ever since offers visitors a full view of the catholic history of the place.
You will find religious artistic manifestations practiced in the Colonial time such as paintings, saints, a tomb and many religious objects that are still used for special occasions and celebrations.

The art collection has approximately 120 pieces among paints, saints’ sculptures, silver objects and a tomb.
The Museum also has an exposition of a former room of a Franciscan, the dining room used since the XVIII century and the sleeveless robes wore by priests on the religious services of that time.

A legend

There is an old legend surrounding the construction of Orosi’s Church.

This Church opens its doors to the sun, which is pretty strange due that the rest of temples look to the West. People from the place say that when the Franciscans first came to Orosi along with Talamanca’s Indians, they carried a Saint’s Joseph image playing a silver bell. But when they got to the mountains the bell did not want to ring no more and they decided that was the place a temple was supposed to be constructed, so they did.

A little time passed, the church got destroyed several times because of a river that passed through. Many penances, prayers were made but they finally understood that in the usual way (facing West), the church will continue falling; so they found that Saint Joseph wanted to face Talamanca (East side).
 

Kurieti Indian Natural History Museum

For the last thirty years, Angel Ramirez Ramirez has dedicated his life to rescue Tobosi Indians traditions and history. His leadership and creativity allowed him to create Kurieti Indian Natural History Museum. It honors a former suquia of the region.

His tie to the local culture started on 1971 when he decided to research his community origins and the relationship with the Piricuci-Tobosi Indians.

As time passed by he had found more than 2000 documents related to the topic. That’s why in 1990, his project was qualified for the Documents Selection and Removable National Commission as a cultural and scientific importance project.

Nowadays Ramirez develops an oral and written investigation, archeological and cultural assets protection. It is in Kurieti Indian Natural History Museum, where all of this goods are kept.

In the Museum you will find information about Tobosi’s Indians backgrounds, Indians tombs replicas, photographs, and many other elements that remind this zone history.

Besides, during the last years, the museum has dedicated part of its time to research, recover and transmit the usage of medicinal plants. That’s why a botanic garden was created. Here Angel Ramirez explains the therapeutically benefits of the trees and flowers that he has grown here.

Omar Salazar Turrialba’s Museum

This Museum is located in the Atlantic Regional Area of Costa Rica’s University (Turrialba). The Museum’s objective is to rescue the area Indian background. You can find archeological exhibitions of the area, which shows the first towns and their way of life in Turrialba.

As an example, there is a magnificent exhibition of ceramic figures such as knifes, burins, scrapers, etc. there is also a scale model of a house used by the Indians. Many information about archeological sites like Guayabo National Monument can be found here. You can see photos of the place and reproductions of original drawings observed in the roadways and a model of the place. The Museum offers a temporary exhibition room that is constantly providing a variety of new theme options.

Childhood Projects

As part of the community service the Museum provides, it develops some Childhood projects for the kindergartens and schools of the area. The idea of the projects is to give students information about the town backgrounds. The theory is combined with practical activities that allow kids to really understand and apply their knowledge.

Purapura Site Museum

Backgrounds:

Historyc and archeological evidence show that in this place “Purapura” was located. This is the name used to determine the most important prehispanic setting of Cartago. It was the Guarco chief’s residence, there was an intense political and echonomical activity proved on many important archeological findings of the place.

By the year 1894, Anastasio Alfonso describes the recovered pieces in this place; then in 1901, Carl Hartman, an archeologist recognized cementeries, monticles, circular bases in the place. Ramón Rojas Troyo, a businessman of the area, was the owner of the lands, as well as the ones in Guayabo, Turrialba. Due to his cultural interest, he collected around 3500 archeological artifacts, which he donated to the State in 1887, a little time before his death. This material has been useful to create Costa Rica’s National Museum.

Through some researches made by MA Ricardo Vázquez Leiva, Costa Rica’s National Museum archeologist, in 1983 they could determine the place limits and the componets of prehispanic settings from 300 years b.C to 1560 a.C. Thanks to the findings on the settle period at the beginning of the colonial period (XVI and XVII centuries) and of abundant deposits of buildings like cementeries, box tombs, paths rests, bases and rocky paths.

In that same year, a decrete was established to protect the place as “Archeological Reservation”

In October 2001 the land was incorporated to Costa Rica’s Historic Archeological Patrimony, according to 7555 Law.

The reservation lands are property of INVU, and it is under constant supervision of Costa Rica’s National Museum and the Culture, Youth and Sports Ministry.

The reservation is frequently visited by many anthropology and archeology students from Costa Rica’s University, who see in this place an important area to develop their investigations.

The Project:

Agua Caliente’s community, treasuring this historical legacy has proposed to rescue the place to develop a project that allows it to function as a “Site Museum”, where education and recreation can be provided for locals and outsiders as well.

Along with “Interinstitutional Commission” guide (ADISFRA, MCJD, MNCR, CATIE; MINAE; HOLCIM; UCR, among others) there has been a established proposal named “Agua Caliente, Purapura Site Museum Project”, that proposes a plan to develop a variety of activities: research, education, administrative and tourism.

To start working on this first stage (2005-2010) it is expected to have the community, private property, universities and national and international institutions participation and founding. We want them to identify themselves with this historical responsibility

CREDITS:

Indio Kurieti, Omar Salazar and San José de Orosi Museum
Texts and photos were given by Ginnette Monge Cisneros of the National Museum’s Communal and Regional Museums Program.

Purapura Museum
Texts and pictures from the investigations in “Agua Caliente Archeological Site” were provided by Lic. Paula Andrea Solano Acuña, “Purapura Project” Director.
Text based on investigations made by MA. Ricardo Vázquez Leiva, Costa Rica’s National Museum Archeologist.
Research Pictures by Archeology Students Major: Mónica Aguilar and Jeffrey Peytrequín. Along with Jensy Salazar Jiménez cooperation. (Anthropology Bachelor student from Costa Rica University)