Object description

The Palacio Municipal de Caracas, or Consejo Municipal de Caracas, is the city hall of Caracas, Venezuela. It is located on the corner of Gradillas a Monjas opposite the Plaza Bolívar, occupying half of the plaza's southern section. The building dates from the seventeenth century but now bears the mark of Alejandro Chataing's Neoclassical additions in 1906. It was the focal point for the Constitutional Convention, and signing of the Declaration of Independence in the nineteenth century . The present building is the result of the work undertaken by the Venezuelan architect Alejandro Chataing in 1906. The west wing of the building, the Capilla de Santa Rosa de Lima , the chapel where Venezuela's independence was declared in 1811, has been fully restored and furnished with authentic period pieces. The ground floor houses the Museo Caracas , which contains works by Venezuela's most celebrated painters and many other historic artifacts. It was declared a National Historic Landmark on 16 February 1979.