Page 66 - The Rough Guide to Panama (Travel Guide)

64 Panama City Central Panama City
1 Languishing in the old railroad’s Pacific terminus, the exhibits have been hidden
from the public since 2010, ostensibly due to the lack of funds to carry out the
necessary renovations on the building; however, the museum is due to open again in
2019. Despite a major theft of almost three hundred pieces in 2003, the collection is
still impressive.
The most eye-catching displays are of pre-Columbian gold, mainly huacas – precious
objects recovered from the burial sites of prominent caciques (chiefs). These include
weapons, tools and intricately carved jewellery, often in fantastical zoomorphic designs.
The beautifully painted, primarily ceremonial, ceramics comprise three distinctive
regional designs. Possibly the most intriguing exhibits, however, are the stone objects
that date back to the Barriles culture – believed to be the country’s oldest civilization
(see p.291). These include ornate ceremonial metates (grinding stones) and curious
large carved figures, some seemingly depicting chiefs or other prominent men being
carried on the shoulders of slaves.

Museo de Arte Contemporáneo
Between Av de los Mártires and C San Blas • Tues–Sat 10am–5pm, Sun 10am–4pm • $5 • T262 8012, Wmacpanama.org • MCinco de Mayo
The privately owned Museo de Arte Contemporáneo houses a permanent collection of
works by Panamanian artists in a range of media. It periodically hosts interesting
temporary exhibitions; photos of the entire collection can be seen on the website.

STRI Earl S. Tupper Research and Conference Centre
Av Roosevelt • Mon–Fri 9am–5pm • Free • T212 8000, Wstri.si.edu • MCinco de Mayo
The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute’s Earl S. Tupper Research and Conference
Centre, set in leafy grounds, hosts an impressive bookshop (see p.86), a research library
and a very pleasant, modestly priced cafeteria. Visits to Isla Barro Colorado (see p.102)
can be arranged at the bookshop.

Calidonia and La Exposición
Beyond Plaza Cinco de Mayo, Avenida Central continues north. The city’s main
thoroughfare remains a busy shopping street as it runs through CALIDONIA – where
the pavements are packed with stalls flogging cheap goods – and LA EXPOSICIÓN.
Consisting of a dense grid of streets, where the sound of construction work is never
far away, these twin barrios are crammed with cheap hotels, with a sprinkling of small
parks and a couple of museums to provide welcome relief. This older section of the
modern city dates back to the boom construction eras of the Panama Railroad and
Canal in the mid- and late nineteenth century (see p.294 & p.295), when a large
number of West Indian immigrants poured into the city. The area’s population
expanded yet further when non-US-Canal labourers and their families – again,
primarily West Indian – were gradually forced out of the newly created Canal Zone
(see p.297) in the early twentieth century.

Museo Afro-Antillano
Av Justo Arosemena (also known as Av 3 Sur) at C 24 • Tues–Sun 9.30am–3.45pm • $1 • T501 4130, Wsamaap.org • MCinco de Mayo
Housed in an unmarked wooden former church, the Museo Afro-Antillano is dedicated
to the history and culture of Panama’s large West Indian population. The Church of
the Christian Mission, as it was then, constituted the social centre of the barrio of El
Marañon, once a thriving Afro-Antillean community dating back to the construction
of the railroad (see p.294). As property prices escalated in the 1970s and developers
moved in, residents were forced out to the suburbs. The community has maintained a
precarious toehold in the centre of the city through this small but worthwhile museum,
which highlights the pivotal role that Afro-Antilleans played in the construction of the
railroad and the Canal. The photographs, tools and period furniture, with captioning

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