Bishop's Palace destroyed by fire in La Laguna, Tenerife

The Bishop's Palace on the island Tenerife has been completely destroyed by fire. The fire began on the second floor of the seventeenth century Casa de Salazar on Calle San Agustín in La Laguna, and quickly spread through the rest of the building, before it was brought under control five hours later.

Casa de Salazar used to be the palace and residence of the Counts del Valle de Salazar, who commissioned the building in 1664. The facade is the work of Juan González de Castro Illada, built in 1681 by Canary Island stone masons Juan Lizcano and Andrés Rodríguez Bello. The sober and balanced Baroque design makes this facade, in the opinion of many people, the finest example of civil architecture in the Canary Islands.

The title of Conde del Valle de Salazar was conceded by Royal Decree of Charles II of Spain on January 21, 1686 to Cristóbal Lázaro Salazar de Frías Espinosa Abarca del Hoyo y Alzola, who was born in La Laguna on March 31, 1645. The first Conde del Valle de Salazar, married María de Ayala y Rojas, sister of the VIII Count of La Gomera. Both were decendents of the merchant family of Ponte, founders of Garachico.

The Count died in Milan in 1716, without issue.

Before the palace was acquired in the 19th century as the seat of the Bishops of Nivaria and Offices of the Curia, it housed the El Porvenir Casino. The piano was used by Teobaldo Power to compose most of his Cantos Canarios. The interior, mostly of wood, was laid out around a patio with pillars that supported galleries and contained important works of art. [image]

Bishop's Palace destroyed by fire in La Laguna, Tenerife
Fire consumes Bishop's Palace in Tenerife
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