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Pazo Quiñones de León
The Historical Garden of the Pazo de Quiñones de León dates from the end of the 19th century, the realization of its design was ordered by the Marqués de Alcedo and María de los Milagros Elduayen, VIII Marchioness of Valladares. Its location is adjacent to the pazo, on a prominent farmland.
Pazo Quiñones de León
Content
Pazo Quiñones de León
General information
Type of historic garden
Private residences
Size
55.000 m2
Location
Parque de Castrelos s/n 36213 Vigo
Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain
Coordinates: 42.21258, -8.72743
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Timetables
Museum (Permanent exhibition)
- Tuesday to Friday: 10:00 - 14:00
- Saturdays: 17:00 – 20:00
- Sundays and holidays: 11:00 – 14:00
Tickets
Free entrance
Contact information
Web: museodevigo.org
Email: museocastrelos@vigo.org
Phone: 0034 986 29 50 70, 0034 986 29 50 75
Pazo Quiñones de León
Natural environment
The garden of the Pazo-Museo Quiñones de León is located in the largest public park in Vigo known as Parque de Castrelos, currently occupying 220,000 m². The Lagares river crosses the property forming a wide variety of green spaces, it has an auditorium, ponds with ducks and swans, wooded areas... All very well harmonized as an urban park converted into a place to practice sports, rest and enjoy great shows.
It has large specimens of leafy trees, mainly deciduous such as banana, acacias, magnolias, cedars, birches... Eucalyptus, oak, weeping willow and alder predominate near the river. The tallest specimens correspond to horse chestnut trees and redwoods and reach heights of 30 meters.
In the surroundings of the artificial lake and the ponds light and sound shows are performed, here there are an abundance of aquatic species and other important shrub species, the camellia maintains a strong presence in the park.
Pazo Quiñones de León
Historical background
The Historical Garden of the Pazo de Quiñones de León dates from the end of the 19th century, the realization of its design was ordered by the Marqués de Alcedo and María de los Milagros Elduayen, VIII Marchioness of Valladares. Its location is adjacent to the pazo, on a prominent farmland.
The authorship of the design and construction of the gardens is unknown, although the influenza of the gardening currents in force at that time in the region of Vigo, was not only Portuguese, but also French and Belgian accredited, this fact, by the settlement of families with a long gardening tradition such as the "Turc" and the "Philippot". In 1924 it was donated to the Vigo City Council.
Ornamental and exotic plants
Today, the gardens present numerous varieties of ornamental and exotic plants, some centuries old, with species such as the French garden camellia, whose age is around two hundred years, Virginia tulip trees and the prairie magnolias, among which is the largest in Galicia. It has 15 monumental trees and 115 species, some included in the catalogue of singular trees.
Pazo Quiñones de León
Description
The landscaped space is located in the immediate surroundings of the house and forms an inseparable set with it. It is conceived, in the manner of the great gardens of Baroque France, from a longitudinal axis perpendicular to the façade that allows it to be seen in its entirety with a single glance.
The gardens were laid out at the end of the 19th century, probably by the prestigious Portuguese gardening company based in Porto, Jacintho Mattos, now defunct, by order of the Marquis of Alcedo. We can observe six well-differentiated parts: the access garden, the rose garden, the French garden, the English garden (or "tea meadow"), the sunny garden in the background and the forest.
The access garden is located in front of the main entrance. It is delimited laterally by the service wing on its right and on its left by a crenelated wall with sentry boxes. Its layout is very simple, a central roundabout with a fountain surrounded by two lateral flowerbeds. The garden continues to the rear of the building in three descending levels. The upper one is occupied by the rose garden. It starts from a gazebo covered with a wooden pergola, which was the old greenhouse.
The French garden
The intermediate constitutes the French garden. Two areas are distinguished: the one near the façade with a myrtle hedge layout that reaches almost labyrinthine, surrounded by a perimeter fret and a fountain in the center. The farthest sector is larger and has a simpler layout, totally symmetrical, around a longitudinal axis and a central rosette. In the side corridor that borders it with the rose garden is the Paseo de los Escudos.
The English garden
The English garden is also called "Tea Meadow" because of the British custom that the owners had of having tea in this place. It is on the lowest level of the gardens. It consists of a rectangular meadow surrounded by two footpaths. In the center there is a pond for ducks with a central island that shows a model of the pazo.
The garden presents numerous varieties of ornamental and exotic plants, some centuries old thanks to the mild climate in Vigo due to its proximity to the sea. Species such as the French garden camellium, whose age is around two hundred years, can be seen, the exotic tulip trees originating in Virginia and the old magnolias of the prairie, among which is the largest in Galicia. This careful vegetation is enriched by sculptures, a gallery of coats of arms and various monuments.
Pazo Quiñones de León
Chronology
- 15th centry
The Pazo Quiñones de León is located in the parish of Castrelos, and the date of its construction is unknown, although the date of its rebuilding (1670) is shown on the cartouche below the main shield located on the facade of the pazo, ordered to be carved. by Don Benito Tavares and his wife, Mrs. Ana Ozores, after the destruction caused in the wars with Portugal. - 16th century
In any case, the house already existed in the 16th century, when Juan Tavarés and his doña Benita Núñez founded the majorat on what was then known as Casa or Palacio de la Lavandera. In a similar way, how it happened to its neighbour, the pazo de Santhomé, the Castrelos or Quiñones de León, was shaping its current appearance from a defensive tower, known by the name of Lavandeira, which once lost its military purpose , architectural elements were added to it in successive times, which were transforming it until its current organization. - 19th century
After important reforms carried out throughout the 19th century under the initiatives of its owners (the Marquises of Alcedo, first, and those of Mos and Valladares later), Don Fernando Quiñones de León took possession of the pazo and he died without heirs in 1918.
The Property later passed to his father, the Marquis de Alcedo, while his wife, Mrs. Mariana White, reserved the right of usufruct. By means of a document granted at the Spanish embassy in Paris, dated 12. XII.1925, the Marquis of Alcedo donated a house and park to the town of Vigo, setting among the clauses one by which the park would be called hereafter " Quiñones de León ”. - 20th century
Finally, the city council acquired the usufruct right of the widowed Marchioness of Mos y Valladares, the aforementioned Mrs. Mariana, by means of a document granted on 15/12/1931 and undertook works aimed at converting the pazo into a municipal museum, a fact that was consummated in 1937.
Since that year it has been the object of the attention of successive corporations, in order to preserve it and improve its facilities, highlighting the 1960s in which important works were made and the museum facilities were expanded, giving a relevant treatment to the archaeology section, in addition to its gardens and forest, while the collection of the painting museum was catalogued.