This large Renaissance structure was built at the end of Calle Las Damas in 1511 as the Real Audiencia. The Royal Audience was the appellate court representing Spain in the Indies (New World). This first courthouse in the Americas had jurisdiction over the Caribbean. The adjacent building served as the Palace of the Governors until 1799. In 1976, they were combined into the Royal Houses Museum. Museo de las Casas Reales is a wonderful experience. There are 20 rooms. Several of them are restored to their historic appearance with period furniture. Among the displays are colonial armaments, maps, Spanish and Taíno artifacts, exhibits about government and family activities plus portraits of Spanish kings. You will also enjoy seeing replicas of the three ships used during Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the New World.
