Museo Art Nouveau and Art Deco (Art Deco and Art Nouveau Museum), Salamanca (must see)

The Museum of Art Nouveau and Art Deco is housed in the Lis House (Casa Lis). Don Miguel de Lis owned a tanning factory. He was thought of as a gifted businessman with inexhaustible energy for work. He inherited the factory and introduced modern production methods of the 19th century that made him rich in his own right.

Don Miguel had another dream, a palatial home. His palace, nestling on an old city wall, was designed by Provincial Architect Joaquin de Vargas y Aguirre. Vargas developed the entire house around an interior patio central to the rooms. He created the facade in iron and glass as a bit of modernist industrial architecture.

Lis House passed through the hands of several owners and finally fell into neglect and deterioration. In 1981 the Salamanca City Council expropriated the building. At present, the Lis House is home to the Museum of Art Nouveau and Art Deco.

The museum exhibits decorative arts from the late 19th century and the period between the two World Wars. It also has one of the largest collections of porcelain dolls. Items displayed include furniture, jewels, fans, textiles, bronzes, and glazes. The chryselephantine statuettes are bronze and marble figures on a marble and onyx base.

When the visit is over, the souvenir and gift shop, Tienda de Lis, is worth a look. The Cafe de Lis is available for snacks or dinner.