INVENTORIES THAT TELL STORIES:

Alcayata para puertas y ventanas que llaman de anca de rana.







RAMÓN GUTIÉRREZ (Buenos Aires, 1939)

Argentinian Senior Research Architect of CONICET, retired. Full Member of the National Academies of History and Fine Arts of Argentina. and Corresponding to those of Spain, Portugal and various American countries. Doctor Honoris Causa from the National University of Tucumán (Argentina), the Ricardo Palma University (Lima. Peru), the Andina University (Cusco. Peru), the Santa María Catholic University (Arequipa. Peru) and the Pablo de Olavide University (Seville, Spain). National Architecture Award (FONART 2003). Declared by the Legislature, Illustrious Citizen of Buenos Aires (2011). Director of the Documentation Center for Latin American Architecture, CEDODAL. Author of more than 300 books and several hundred articles on topics of architecture, urban planning and heritage.


By Ramón Gutiérrez

kingdom's activities and could be used in the metropolis, as in fact happened with the rich Cuban woods that were used for the construction of the Royal Palace of Madrid or that favored the location of the shipyards in La Havana or Guayaquil. Also obviously, to benefit the export of elements manufactured in the metropolis to the colonies, as seems to be the destination of this inventory tending to systematize, through the survey, the definition of peninsular exports.

In general, many of these geographical descriptions and inventories were made by members of the Royal Corps of Military Engineers and transferred by the Viceroys, Governors or Intendants to the Council of the Indies. The original manuscript can be consulted in the General Archive of the Indies. Hearing File of Buenos Aires, number 37. Given that the document speaks of the "Province of Buenos Aires" it is probable that it predates 1776, when the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata or Buenos Aires (its capital) was created. This presumption is also supported by the fact that there are no records in the inventory of iron bars for windows with the planchets and profiles that would later become general, most imported from Vizcaya.

Goods detail:

+ Barrettes of a regular thickness and the longest of five quarters and the widest point its cutting tongue of three fingers wide more or less, and in the other that forms four corners that end in a point and the body of the barrette make it round.

+ Hoes that have a large eye one-third wide and in proportion to the length, and so on, like the jibs shod with good steel and of the said hoes, some smaller ones.

+ Hoes that have like half a rod with the big eye and others called escardillas.

+ Hoes with its pointed beak from above and to the part that is used to dig and make the figure of the bar with its own width the tongue also wedged in steel.

+ Said with the two pointed points that make four corners.

+ Blades of all sizes but none of the very large ones.

+ Decks with two heads that have a big eye.

+ Spikes for tahonas stones like the ones used in Spain.

+ Plowshares like those used in Spain.

+ Biscayan axes that have a big eye, a hammer head and some more small ones all sizes, roads of good steel.

+ Adze all of iron the mouth of a fourth, made of good steel and facing upwards.

+ Said Adzes of all sizes for carpenters with their ring and the rest that is necessary to assemble them.

+ Irons for all brush layas fitted with good steel.

+ Chisels of all sizes, the widest ones with three fingers of the mouth shod with good steel parts that are all made of iron and others that can be fitted with wooden ropes.

+ Gouges and other tools used by carpenters and sculptors.

+ The necessary iron to assemble benches for carpenters work.

+ Hinges for doors and windows that call of frog's leg with their rivet nails.

+ Locks for doors and windows and boxes of all sizes that have strong keys.

+ Said deadbolt locks with their keys. Said without them.

+ Pins for doors and windows of all sizes with and without glues.

+ Hasps and latches that are strong.

+ Augers of all calibers and some that have an iron pipe.

+ Scythes of those used in Spain to cut long grass and some of the short ones, with their rings to put the wooden ends.

+ Sickles for mowing wheat.

+ All kinds of saws that are of good temper.

+ Saws of all English sizes that have the largest a quarter of the width of the blade and about a rod in length, with their wooden ends and in them the handle of one hand.

+ Buckets and axes for Masons.

+ Iron squares and other necessary instruments that are used to work in the said trade.

+ Anvils, pliers, hammers and other necessary that Blacksmiths use to work in this trade.

+ Files of all sizes.

+ Compasses of all sizes.

+ Three-foot iron pots and with them the height of a fourth large and small with their lids of the same.

+ Own pans and ladles.

+ Pewter plates and dishes.

+ Yellow metal spoons that should be quite thick and durable.

+ Seeds of all qualities as well as those that are necessary for planting and fruit trees will be found in abundance in Buenos Aires and its jurisdiction and also all the necessary castes of animals.


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