Saturday, February 7, 2009

San Diego 1915: Science and Education Building.....

Located on the north side of El Prado, immediately east of the California State Building, was the Panama-California Exposition's Science and Education Building. Designed with a mixture of Spanish Renaissance, Moorish, and Churrigueresque architecture, the building's main facade faced El Prado and featured two tile-roofed bays extending over the arcade. Each bay was of a Spanish Renaissance design, with an ornamented cornice, and contained three decoratively-framed Italian Renaissance windows. Between these bays was located the heavily-ornamented main entrance to the building, formed by an accentuated archway of the arcade, and topped by a small pavilion with a terra-cotta tile roof. Beyond this entrance, behind the arcade, was situated a lushly landscaped patio, containing a lawn and an abundance of tropical plants and trees, as well as two small faun-head fountains of classic Roman design. At the south-east corner of the patio was placed an octagonal Moorish stair-tower, surmounted by a black and yellow tiled turret. A second landscaped patio occupied an area at the corner of the Plaza de Panama and El Prado, and featured an additional faun-head fountain, and a small ornate balcony set high upon the wall. The building's ornate east entrance was designed in a Churrigueresque style, and based on the Iglesia de San Francisco in Puebla, Mexico. Within the building were located numerous scientific and educational exhibits, many of which were provided by the Smithsonian Institution.

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