The pink church. This is the Ascencion Church found inside the vast Villa Escudero Plantations and Resort in San Pablo City, Laguna. It was a Spanish-style church and being used as a museum. My daughter took this picture during her educational field trip five years ago.
Do you know what it is like to be a curator or guardian of historical site?
Let Alvin Alcid, the curator of Aguinaldo Shrine in Cavite, tell you all about his work. I met Alcid in 2004 while he and his staffs were busy preparing for the 106th celebration of Philippine Independence.
Alcid, is the Division Senior Historic Sites Development Officer of the National Historical Institute. He took over the management of Aguinaldo Shrine the century old national treasure replacing retired curator Rosalinda Aguinaldo, the granddaughter of Crispulo Aguinaldo, who was the elder brother of General Emilio Aguinaldo.
After the first curator, Corazon Andrade, Alcid is the third custodian of the century-old national treasure since Gen. Aguinaldo donated the ancestral house and its surrounding properties to the government in 1963. Gen. Aguinaldo died the following year.
The National Historical Institute is maintaining the shrine along with other 29 historical sites and museums nationwide. Alcid got assigned in three shrines since joining NHI. He served as tour guide in Fort Santiago in Intramuros before he was transferred to the NHI Museum of Philippine Political History along Kalaw Avenue, Manila as curator.
The Aguinaldo Shrine, which was originally built in 1845, sits in 1,300 square meter lot area. It had undergone several expansions and renovations since it was built in 1849.
It is one of the prominent sites in Cavite. The two other sites are the Ancestral House of Baldomero Aguinaldo in Binakayan and the place where Andres Bonifacio was tried in Maragondon.
The author with Alcid (partly hidden), taking a tour of the mansion.
As a curator, Alcid maintains the orderliness of the shrine. He entertains guests, and supervises other activities like the birth and death anniversaries of Gen. Aguinaldo. He was also involved in book launching and networking with other historical associations of Cavite.
Alcid loves to work at the shrine because he feels that he is part of history. He has access to historical relics which ordinary people do not have.
“When ordinary people visit a museum, they will just look at a piece of history. But we, who work in the museum, are the ones who clean that item, read that particular document that you would not be able to read in any library or bookstore,†Alcid proudly said.
Coin collecting or investing may sound boring for most people, but it is a serious business for the people who do collect them. Acquiring rare coins is only a part of the process. The majority of the process concerns of keeping your coins safe and in perfect condition. This may sound easy to do, but its not. These coins need special storage units to keep them from deteriorating since even air, humidity and dust can contribute to its deterioration.
There are basically two important points when storing and preserving rare coins. First is how to properly store them individually. Second is how to properly store them in groups or an entire set.
Environment of the coin storage is very important when it comes to storing them individually or in groups. The most important factors to consider are light, humidity and temperature.
It is best that you store your rare coins in an environment with consistent low to moderate temperature. Low humidity is also very important that is why it is advisable to place packets of silica gels on your storage units since they absorb moisture very well. The lesser amount of light your coins are exposed to the better and never expose your coins to direct sunlight.
For storing group of coins, it is best that you store them in containers designed for such purposes like coin box sets. You can also use cardboard storage box and they can easily be stacked on top of the other. However, if you use such boxes, it is best that you to protect your coins individually with packaging designed for individual packing before you place them inside a cardboard coin box. There are advantages of using such boxes though, you can store other items such as gold coin pendant or other jewelries inside them just in case you dispose your coins without the boxes.
You can also store your coin sets using albums and folders. The great thing about these is if they properly used, they offer great protection from handling and wear. However, a word of caution, coins may react negatively to the chemicals present in the plastic covers. If you do not have high quality albums, then it is not a good idea to use them for long term. Your coins are still exposed to moisture and light, which is not a good thing. If the plastic covers are constantly sliding in and out, it may scratch the coins.