The House of the Ezeiza, Colonial mansion in San Telmo, Argentina

The House of the Ezeiza is a two-storey Italianate house at Defensa 1179 in San Telmo, built on a lot 15 metres wide and 62 metres deep. Three courtyards named del Árbol, del Tiempo and de los Ezeiza run lengthwise, linked by corridors along the north wall, with rooms to the south and galleries on both floors. Iron columns carry Corinthian capitals, the ground floor is clad in Carrara marble, and the patios keep their black-and-white checkerboard tiles.

The Ezeiza family, descendants of immigrants from Albistur in the Basque Country, built the house; no document certifies the exact date, though 1876 is commonly given. According to their descendants, the family left for Barrio Norte after the 1871 yellow fever epidemic, as many wealthy porteño families did. In 1910 a primary school opened in the building, later replaced by the Instituto Nacional de Sordomudos; after the 1930 crisis it became a conventillo housing 32 families.

The three courtyards carry the names del Árbol, del Tiempo and de los Ezeiza, and the middle one is dominated by a tree. The ground floor is clad in Carrara marble that wealthy families had shipped from Italy, and the iron columns end in Corinthian capitals. The aljibe, or cistern, once supplied the household with barely drinkable water.

The building is entered from Defensa Street at number 1179, half a block from Plaza Dorrego. Inside, the three courtyards are linked by a corridor along the north wall, with rooms to the south; two staircases, one added in 1980, reach the upper galleries. Shops occupy the ground floor and mezzanine levels inserted into the tall rooms.

The Carrara marble facing of the ground floor was hidden for decades and only came to light during the 1980 renovation by architects Raúl Servente, Félix Alemán and Juan Firpo, who also uncovered the original aljibe, the cistern that once supplied the household with water.