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The most important viceregal art collection in Peru

The Pedro de Osma museum owes its name to the Peruvian philanthropist Pedro de Osma y Pardo who founded a foundation in the name of his children. His collection, one of the largest in Peru, is now part of the museum. There are hundreds of works of viceregal art, the most important in all of Peru.

The museum is located in a palace built in 1906 and designed by the architect Santiago Basurco. It stands out for its innovative design with art nouveau stained glass windows, French gardens, marble finishes and fine ornaments.

Throughout his life Pedro de Osma collected an important number of viceregal works of art. Upon his death in 1967, as was his wish, these were donated for the creation of a museum in his house in Barranco.

In 1996 the museum opened its doors to visitors. Over time, the collection improved thanks to donations from private collectors such as Guillermo Wiese de Osma. Likewise, in 2017 the southern Andean room was inaugurated with pieces belonging to the Tiahuanaco and Inca cultures.

In total the museum has twelve rooms: a) Mannerism, b) Marian invocations, c) Angels and archangels, d) Restoration processes, e) Sculptures, f) Allegories, g) Cusco XVII century, h) Cusco 18th century, i) Portraits and furniture, j) Piedra de Huamanga and k) Silverware and Art from the South Andean.

In addition, the museum, run by the Pedro y Angélica de Osma Gildemeister Foundation, is committed to education through courses, publications, restoration workshops and corporate events.

Where is?

The Pedro de Osma museum is located in the district of Barranco, Lima – Peru. Its exact address is Avenida Pedro de Osma 421.

Map

How to get?

To get to the Pedro de Osma museum you must follow these steps:

• From anywhere in the city of Lima you can take the ‘Metropolitano’ line to the tourist district of Barranco (at the height of the Military School). The cost of the ticket is 2.5 Peruvian soles (less than 1 US dollar).
• From the Miraflores district you can take a taxi for a price of approximately 15 Peruvian soles (5 US dollars).
• The public transport lines that arrive there are: 7103, 7501, 7606 and 8516.

Pedro de Osma y Pardo (1868 – 1936) was a Peruvian politician and lawyer recognized for being the leader of the Pierolista Democratic Party and the newspaper La Prensa. He was also mayor of the Barranco district, mayor of Lima and president of the National Club. Throughout his life he collected hundreds of pieces of colonial art that he donated to the foundation that bears his name in charge of his children Pedro and Angélica de Osma Gildemeister. Today, this collection is part of the Pedro de Osma museum at his home in Barranco.

The showrooms

Room 1 Mannerism – This artistic movement that distanced itself from classicism began at the beginning of the 16th century in Italy and the rest of Europe. In the viceroyalty he sought evangelization through visual art mainly of canvases on saints and virgins of Christianity. Some of the most prominent representatives are: Bernardo Bitti, Pérez de Alesio and Medoro. In the museum there are works such as: ‘Virgin with child’, ‘Virgin of the scepter’, ‘Christ of the cane’ and more.

Room 2 Marian Invocations – The colonial works of art that refer to the mysteries, apparitions and gifts alluding to the Virgin Mary are not few. These had an evangelizing function, mainly in painting. It is related to the cult of mother earth (pachamama). The works, mostly anonymous, that stand out in the museum are: Our Lady of Candelaria de Tenerife, the altarpiece of the Virgin of Copacabana, the Virgin of the Rosary of Pomata and more.

Room 3 Angels and archangels – Angels and archangels are very present in colonial artistic iconography. The evocations refer to cherubim, seraphim, thrones, virtues, dominations, powers, archangels and angels. Most of the works belong to the Cusco school of the 18th century. Works such as the ‘Archangel Arcabucero’, ‘Guardian Angel’, ‘Archangel Ariel’ and more stand out.

Room 4 Restoration processes – As its name indicates, this room exhibits the restoration process of the works by the Pedro de Osma Foundation. Due to the high quality of these works, they commissioned the restoration of other works such as the traditional image of the Lord of Miracles, the sculpture of El Arquero de la Muerte by Baltazar Gavilán, the Immaculate Conception and more.

Room 5 Sculptures – The first sculptures brought from Spain came from Seville. These works influenced the local people who created their own works, mainly in Cusco. The most used material was the maguey decorated with pieces of silver and gold. The museum highlights works such as: the ‘Piedad’, the ‘Baltazar Gavilán’, ‘Santa Ana’ and more.

Room 6 Allegories – Allegories are artistic resources to symbolize various aspects of Christianity in the population of the colony, illiterate to these allegories mainly about life and death in the new world. The museum’s paintings, sculptures and engravings refer to biblical passages as they fulfilled the function of evangelization. Works such as ‘The Defense of the Eucharist with Saint Rose’, the ‘Nave of the church’, the ‘Exaltation of the Eucharist with the Holy Trinity’ and more stand out.

Room 7 Cusco XVII century – Although Lima was the capital of the viceroyalty, due to its historical and cultural past, Cusco was a central axis in the creation of viceregal art, mainly in painting and sculpture. Thus, at the beginning of the seventeenth century the ‘Cusco School’ emerged with representatives such as Diego Quispe Tito and Basilio de Santa Cruz. Of course the works of Bernardo Bitti, Angelino Medoro and others, influenced. The museum highlights works such as: ‘San Juan Evangelista’, ‘Virgen de los Desamparados’, ‘Return from Egypt’ and more.

Room 8 Cusco 18th century – The heyday of the ‘Cusco School’ was reached throughout the 18th century. Some of the best works were Marian representations as well as angels and archangels. Artists such as Marcos Zapata, Basilio Pacheco and Mauricio García stand out. Compared to the previous century, gold foil decorations are used more. In the museum there are relevant works such as: the ‘Lord of the Earthquakes’, ‘Dinner of the Holy Family’, ‘Virgin girl spinning’ and more.

Room 9 Portraits and furniture – In this room groups of portraits of Spanish kings such as Carlos III or Carlos IV are exhibited, which were made by local artists. There are also portraits of Pedro de Osma himself and other illustrious figures of the 19th and 20th centuries. In the room there is furniture from the 18th century brought from Europe, Japan, the Philippines and Latin America.

Room 10 Huamanga Stone – The museum’s collection includes a series of stone carvings from the town of Huamanga, in Ayacucho. These works by renowned Peruvian artists were made with a volcanic stone from Huamanga. The theme varies from religious images to profane objects. The museum exhibits works by anonymous artists such as the ‘Mystic Press’, the ‘Birth of the Virgin’, the ‘Presentation of the Virgin’ and more.

Room 11 Silverware – Metallurgy in the Andean world has a tradition that dates back a thousand years before the Christian era. Mineral deposits, mainly silver in Potosí, were used for the creation of artistic objects for the decoration of churches, palaces and colonial houses from the 18th and 19th centuries. In the museum, works such as the ‘Devotional Plate with the Tree of Jesé’, the ‘Incense burner’ or the ‘Vases’ stand out.

Room 12 Southern Andean Art – This room, with a different theme from the rest of the museum, brings together an important collection of pieces from the cultures of the Peruvian South Andean. specifically from the Tiahuanaco and Inca cultures. The collection was the last to be organized as it was donated by Guillermo Wiese de Osma. The collection of keros, ceremonial vessels as well as metallurgical objects in gold and silver stands out.

Price of admission

These are the entrance prices to the Pedro de Osma museum:

• General adult foreigners: 30 Peruvian soles.
• Peruvians general adult: 20 Peruvian soles.
• Foreign students and seniors: 15 Peruvian soles.
• Peruvian students and seniors: 10 Peruvian soles.
• First Sunday of the general month: 5 Peruvian soles.

Hours of Operation

The museum is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m..

The museum is closed on Good Friday, May 1, December 24, December 25, December 31 and January 1.

Photos of the Pedro de Osma museum

More information for your visit

If you like museums, don’t miss the opportunity to visit other cultural centers such as archaeological site of Huaca Pucllana, which also has a site museum.

The museum ticket price includes the guided tour at the following times: from 10.15 am, 11.15 am, 2.15 pm and 4.15 pm. The guides are trained in museum pedagogy . The tour takes approximately 45 minutes.

The museum has descriptions in 5 languages: Spanish, English, French, Portuguese and Japanese. There are also downloadable audio guides on the Play Store and App Store.

The museum also has free Wi-Fi service, free access with bicycles and cars as well as facilities and access for people with wheelchairs.