A Welcome to the Casa
A Welcome to the Casa, 1932
W. H. D. Koerner (American, 1878-1938)
Oil on canvas
36 x 30 in.
Gift of Ruth Koerner Oliver
11.82.76.1
Media Category: History 101
Fun and interesting anecdotes from Santa Barbara’s rich history.
Harmer Moonlight
“After supper, the waltzing began . . . Don Juan with a sister of the bride . . . no one else taking the floor. They were repeatedly and loudly applauded, the old men and women jumping out of their seats in admiration and the young waving their hats and handkerchiefs.”
– Richard Henry Dana, 1836, Two Years Before The Mast Describing the wedding reception of Ana María de la Guerra and Alfred Robinson
Moonlight, c. 1924
[Casa de la Guerra in Spanish Times]
Alexander F. Harmer (American, 1856-1925)
Oil on canvas
24 x 36 inches
Museum Acquisition Fund
Through the generosity of the Susan Trenwith Estate
1990.142
desk set de la guerra
Ownership of silver provided a sense of aristocracy and guaranteed financial stability during the colonization of California. Under Spanish law, silversmithing was illegal, except in urban centers like Mexico City where the purity in finished pieces could be assured. This produced heavier objects of a higher luster unlike any silver in the world.p>
Desk Set of José de la Guerra, c. 1791-1818
Pure silver, Mexican, Neoclassical Style
The urns are inkwells and sand shakers.
Gift of Virginia Dibblee 12.81.82.1
de la guerra silver web
De la Guerra Family Coffee and Tea Service, 1814
Sterling silver, Gerardus Boyce, New York, N.Y. maker
Coffee urn, two teapots, sugar and creamer
Gift of Alfred Dibblee Poett
1987.23.1 – 5
De la Guerra Dinnerware, c. 1804
Two plates from a set of twenty-four gifted to José de la Guerra on his marriage in Mexico City.
Pure silver, Mexican
Inscribed José de la Guerra y Noriega Noveles, 1779-España
Frederica Dibblee Poett Bequest
8.71.73.2 and 1999.98.12
De la Guerra Platter, c. 1804
Pure silver, Mexican
Inscribed José de la Guerra y Noriega Noveles, 1779-España
Frederica Dibblee Poett Bequest
1999.98.6
Joaquin Murietta
mexican rule
Spanish Breastplate
Breastplate, Spanish, c. 17th century
Gift of Dudley C. Backus
12.64.178.10
Cabasset (helmet); Buffe (chin guard);
Cup-Hilt Broadsword; Main Gauche (left-handed dagger)
Spanish, circa 17th century
Lent courtesy Jim Jeter
Lance Blade, Spanish, c. 17th century
Gift of Jim Jeter
2003.28.1
Spur, Spanish, c. 17th century
Gift of Antoinette Delpy Carrillo
x.3.63.12.5
Silver Scale Weights, Indo-Persian, c. 17th century
Anonymous gift
12.64.179.1-3
Seal of Spain, c. 1840
Gift of Catherine Lataillade
xx.12.59.38.3
Reales & Escudos, (Spanish coinage), c. 16th & 17th century
Recovered from the 1622 wreck of the Nuestra Señora de Atocha.
Gift of James and Mary Carrigan
1991.66.1-16
Saint Barbara
A 1483 story tells of a beautiful woman named Barbara who was born in Asia Minor in 218 AD. Her father, Dioscorus of Nicomedia, regarded his daughter a gift from a goddess. To protect her from the glances of men, he began construction of a tower with a bathhouse, courtyard and gardens. While he was away with the Roman army, Barbara instructed the builders to add a third window to her tower. Questioned by her father, Barbara confessed her conversion to Christianity, stating three windows represented the Trinity. He then demanded she worship his gods or be put to death. She chose the latter, and was taken to a mountain where her father beheaded her with his sword. For this deed, he was instantly struck dead by lightning.
Saint Barbara, French, c. 16th century
Artist unknown
Oil on board
47 x 21 inches
Gift of Paul McCoole
12.67.194.1
Saint Barbara Feast Day
In December 1602, on the eve of St. Barbara’s Feast Day, Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno sailed into the channel, whereupon the priest aboard the ship christened it Santa Barbara.
Ste. Barbe [Saint Barbara]
Artist unknown
French, c. 18th century
Polychrome on wood
Gift of Helen W. Huber Real Property Trust
In memory of Helen W. and George J. Huber
1996.102.1
fransciscan
The Franciscans brought this statue and the adjoining candlesticks for use in the Santa Barbara presidio chapel. The figure sustained damage in the earthquakes of 1812 and 1925. Monsignor P. J. Stockman later gifted these objects to Lucinda Trussell.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Spanish, c. late 17th century
Gilded, polychrome on wood
Candlesticks, Mexican, c. late 17th century
Polychrome on wood
Gift of María Lorenza Trussell
xx.11.55.55 and x.55.2.1 & 2
Saint Miguel
Miguel Cabrera was one of Mexico’s most prolific artists. He served as court painter to the archbishop of Mexico and in 1756, led several groups of painters in an official examination of the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe
The Immaculate Conception
Miguel Cabrera (Mexican, 1695-1768)
Oil on Canvas
15 ½ x 23 ½ inches
Anonymous gift in memory of Edward Oreña de Koch
5.86.75.2