About the museum
The museum, located in a 19th century mansion, has an interesting collection of aboriginal ceramics and other interesting utensils and mummified Guanche remains, 17th century maps, collections of butterflies, weapons, wood specimens from the country side of the Canary Islands, etc. Most of the pieces come from private donations.One of the museum’s most valuable pieces is Guatimac, a tiny Guanche idol made of clay.
Guatimac
Guatimac is an owl-shaped Guanche idol figurine, found in 1885 surrounded by the skin of goat and hidden in a cave in Fasnia Tenerife.It is related to the magical and religious world of the Guanches. It represents a protective spirit in the form of an owl and was used by priests of the Guanche civilization. It is believed that the Guatimac represents the internal world, the spirit of the Guanche soldier. At the site of the discovery of the idol had been found in the 18th century, a large number of Guanche mummies in a cave-tomb.Guatimac represents a rarity in idols known in the Canary Islands, it is not similar among the remains of the ancient inhabitants of the archipelago not even own island of Tenerife.The idol has a hole through which a belt could be passed so it could be hung around the neck. Images similar to the Guatimac idol were used by Guanche priests. Despite its small size, only about 16 cm tall, it has great anthropological value, since it is one of the few idols of prehistoric Tenerife that have survived to today.
Timetable
Monday- closed
from Tuesday to Saturday- 10am-1pm//5pm-9pm
Sunday (free) -10am-1pm
from Tuesday to Saturday- 10am-1pm//5pm-9pm
Sunday (free) -10am-1pm
Address
Calle del Lomo,4
Puerto de la Cruz |