The former Assembly House of Abellaneda houses the Encartaciones Museum, which provides a chronological overview of the region and its inhabitants from an economic, social, political, and cultural perspective.
It's a great place to meet, enjoy, and learn about the present and past life of Enkarterri, providing a historical, political, ethnographic, and heritage overview of the region and its inhabitants.
In addition, the museum serves as a center for the study, dissemination, and recovery of Enkarterri's historical, artistic, and ethnographic heritage.
The House of Meetings
The Abellaneda Assembly House is one of the region's most representative symbols, representing the territory's freedoms and privileges .
It is difficult to specify the exact moment in which these meetings of the noblemen of Encartamiento began, who came representing their family, tower or house, and finally transformed (probably at the end of the 16th century) into the meeting of the representatives of the different municipalities of Encartamiento.
The reason why this place was chosen as the headquarters for the Juntas Encartadas is its strategic location , as it is situated in the geographical centre of the region.
We have no information that allows us to verify the original appearance of the Assembly House. However, we do know that in 1635 the coat of arms, currently the only decorative element of the building, was placed on its main façade. It depicts the coat of arms of the Lordship and those of the Lord of Biscay .
The building we see today, whose main purpose is to serve as a museum, is the result of the various restoration stages that took place during the first half of the 20th century. During this period, an extra floor was added and the crenellations along the facades and terraces were arranged.