Rizaliana Furniture Exhibit: A Photoblog Tour

Jose Rizal's bust upon entering the Rizalian Furniture Exhibit. 

Some years ago, the Baluarte de Santa Barbara was just a curious and derelict room inside Fort Santiago. Today, it is now the site of the Rizaliana Furniture Exhibit. The exhibit showcases some of the interesting properties of the Rizal family from their ancestral house in Calamba. The entrance to the exhibit costs ten pesos and, to my delight, taking of pictures is allowed.

Jose Rizal's thick clothes he used during his stay in Europe.

When I saw Rizal's thick clothes that he wore in Europe, I can't believe that he was a just small guy. I mean, I know that he was just around 4'11" when he died. But I never thought that he was really that small- considering the number of things that he had accomplished not only for himself but also for the whole nation. When I saw how small his clothes were, my respect for him rose only higher.

A furniture set taken from the Rizal family residence in Calamba, Laguna.

The furniture exhibited are all awe-inspiring, being a fan of old Filipino style myself. Not only that they looked elegant in my eyes. There all still looked sturdy and highly usable, considering how old they already are.

The dining table and the cabinet were all from the Rizal family residence in Calamba , Laguna.

Did you see that blue translucent vase on the table-top? It glows with sunshine! But this picture was nothing compared with how I exactly saw it inside the exhibit. It was a beauty.

Each member of the Rizal family member was made a genealogy chart. This one is of Jose Rizal's sister, Olympia. 

The area that I stayed the most in the exhibit was in front of the clan's genealogy charts. I found it very delightful looking at the names of the ancestors as well as the children of each of the Rizal family member. Somehow, I mused to myself, "Could it be that we were a distant relative of the Rizals? We came from Binan, Laguna." Hahaha. Wishful thinking.

One of the copies of El Filibusterismo is kept inside the Rizaliana Furniture Exhibit.

Rizal's novels were all works of love. He wrote his manuscripts using his hands. No typewriters. No printers. No iPads. Just his mighty pen!

This is the writing chest Jose Rizal used.

This was Rizal's "iPad" during his time. This was his writing chest. I have also read from somewhere that Rizal actually used a wooden pen with a metal nib- not a quill. This is contrary to what most of the paintings and illustrations of him told us.

I enjoyed my quick visit to the Rizaliana Furniture Exhibit. It was very telling of how rich the Rizal family was- judging from the characteristics of the properties that they had. My ten pesos went a long way!