The 1859 Balay Na Tisa (House of Tiles)

Built during the heydays of the Spanish lore and rule (circa 1859) in Carcar, Province of Cebu, Philippines, this terra-cotta roofed manor house (a.k.a. Balay Na Tisa) was owned by one Don Sarmienta along Sta. Catalina St. It is just a stone’s throw from the 1876 Graeco-Tuscanian style church of St. Catherine of Alexandria (I will post this later).

View On Black

It is one of the few well-preserved remaining houses, of its kind, in Cebu, spanning four generations. This heritage site houses the artifacts during its time: priceless antiques of silver and ceramics and furnitures made of tindalo wood of the Sarmiento family. Not far from this place is the famous Noel House (or the Big House) where Gen. Leon Kilat was killed six days after his glorious victory against the Spanish invaders at Tres de Abril, Cebu City.

Tisa is a form of limestone.

This photo was taken last March 16, 2008 — Cebu Heritage South Tour with the Accenture Group. As my personal interpretation to bygone eras of my rich Filipino heritage, I used an enormous scope of darker and strong toning and contrast work for this image. Between layers of rich, deep brown sepia and light copper, the rustic approach is an exquisite highlight to this treatment process for revealing the look-and-feel glory days and texture of the place.

N.B. Special thanks to jacatac for the texture.

 

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