Exhibition covering 300 years of Spanish influence in the U.S. to open May 11

Exhibition covering 300 years of Spanish influence in the U.S. to open May 11

WHO: The Historic New Orleans Collection with the Acción Cultural Española (AC/E) and Spain’s Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation

WHAT: “The Threads of Memory: Spain and the United States (El Hilo de la Memoria: España y los Estados Unidos),” a traveling exhibition and companion catalogue

WHEN: May 11–July 10, 2011

Gallery hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Sunday, 10:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

WHERE: 533 Royal St. in the French Quarter

HOW: This exhibition is free and open to the public. For more information, call (504) 523-4662 or visit www.hnoc.org.

WHY: This summer a traveling exhibition coming to the Gulf Coast brings nearly three centuries of documents, paintings, maps and illustrations portraying Spain’s role in discovering and colonizing what would become the United States of America.

“The Threads of Memory: Spain and the United States” will conclude its three-city American tour with an eight-week run at The Historic New Orleans Collection, 533 Royal St., May 11–July 10, 2011.

Selected from the Archive of the Indies in Seville, these items are rarely displayed outside of Spain. Visitors will have the opportunity to view nearly 140 items, including Juan Ponce de León’s 1521 letter reporting the discovery of “the island of Florida,” a 1544 map of the Lower Mississippi Valley and a 1778 portrait of then-General George Washington commissioned by a diplomatic representative of Spain.

Gallery hours are 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Tuesday–Saturday, and 10:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. on Sunday. The exhibition was organized by The Historic New Orleans Collection, the Acción Cultural Española (AC/E), the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation and the Spanish Ministry of Culture. Falia González Díaz of the Archive of the Indies curated the display, which is sponsored by Fundación Rafael de Pino. A bilingual companion catalogue, “The Threads of Memory,” is available in The Shop at The Collection for $65.

Founded in 1966, The Historic New Orleans Collection is a museum, research center and publisher dedicated to the study and preservation of the history and culture of New Orleans and the Gulf South region. For more information about The Historic Collection, visit www.hnoc.org or call (504) 523-4662.

The Historic New Orleans Collection—Preserving our Past for a Brighter Future.

###