Havana: History and Architecture of a Romantic City
Now that Cuba's doors are beginning to open to its northern neighbor, a generation for which Cuba has been a blank slate is coming to appreciate the unique cultural riches that the country has to offer. Much of the island nation's art and architectural patrimony centers on Havana. Lobo Montalvo has documented the city's growth from a fortified colonial outpost to a twentieth-century metropolis. Although she died in 1998 after creating a manuscript version of her highly personal history of Havana, her children completed this sumptuous volume, and it stands as one of the best currently available records of the city's physical growth. Using extant provincial structures, Lobo Montalvo illustrates what some of Havana's first buildings must have looked like. She traces the city's colonial growth from the first fortifications guarding the city's strategically valuable harbor through its Spanish heyday into independence. Outstanding color photographs document the rich architectural and decorative history of old Havana. Simultaneously published in Spanish, this colorful volume contributes to an understanding of Havana's key role as a leading city of the Western Hemisphere.Mark KnoblauchCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.