President's Office, Asmara
TheAsmara President's Officeis the building, in Italian neoclassical style, where thePresidentofEritrealives and rules the country.
History
[edit]The former Italian government's palace was built in 1897 byFerdinando Martini,the first Italian governor of Eritrea. The Italian government wanted to create inAsmara(just made capital of Eritrea in place of Massawa[1]) an impressive building, from where the Italian governors could show the dedication of theKingdom of Italyto the "Colonia primogenita" (first daughter-colony) as Eritrea was called.[2]
During theItalian Empirethe building was improved as the center of the "Governatorato dell'Eritrea"; it was heavily damaged duringWorld War IIand then converted into a National Museum by theEthiopianauthorities in the 1950s.
Today, it is the office of the President of Eritrea,Isaias Afewerki.
Structure
[edit]GovernorFerdinando Martiniwanted a structure with colonnades at the entrance in neoclassical style, surrounded by a park with lush vegetation. In his opinion the building would be the biggest and most beautiful in Asmara, the newly declared capital of the Italian colony in 1897.
The interior was decorated with Italian marble and furniture brought fromItalyandFrance.The main hall was decorated with typicalRenaissancestairs toward the projected second floor. The main doors were specially crafted with wood fromBrazil.
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^Asmara italiana
- ^Ferdinando Martini.RELAZIONE SULLA COLONIA ERITREA- Atti Parlamentari - Legislatura XXI - Seconda Sessione 1902 - Documento N. XVI -Tipografia della Camera dei Deputati. Roma, 1902
15°20′10″N38°55′53″E/ 15.3362°N 38.9314°E
