Edificio Ex Intendencia, Valparaíso, Historical monument at Plaza Sotomayor, Valparaíso, Chile.
The Edificio Ex Intendencia, now the headquarters of the Chilean Navy, is a five-story, 8,000-square-metre building on Plaza Sotomayor facing the Monument to the Heroes of Iquique. Its eclectic facade mixes Renaissance Revival elements, and the design by architect Ernesto Urquieta drew on French town halls such as the Hôtel de Ville in Paris. The first three floors held Intendencia offices, while the top two held the intendente's residence and a presidential apartment.
This building was constructed after a devastating earthquake in 1906 destroyed the original structure, with work completed in 1910. It was designed to mark Chile's centennial and symbolize the city's recovery and progress.
The building's name recalls its first use as the Intendencia de Valparaíso, the provincial government seat, before it passed to the Chilean Navy. Its Salón de Invierno hosted masquerade balls by 1914, and in the 1960s intendente Enrique Vicente held the first non-aristocratic party there for Santiago Wanderers football players and fans.
The building sits directly on Sotomayor Street at the main plaza, making it easy to locate when visiting the city center. Note that it currently houses a military command, so interior access may be limited to exterior viewing.
The building's Salón Rojo hosted a ball in honour of Umberto of Savoy, heir to the Italian throne, in the mid-1920s, as recorded by the architect Tomás Eastman Montt. In the 1950s the intendente Rivas Vicuña revived the 1914-era masquerade balls in the same rooms.
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