It is one of the most significant buildings you can see in Plaza de la Catedral (The Cathedral Square), in the Old Havana area. This house was occupied by the Marquis of Arcos; Doctor Francisco Teneza who was given the title of Protodomedico of Havana by the Spanish crown. 

On may 6th 1707 the Marquis asked and had the permission to build portals in his house, apparently of one plant. This was how the history of a building started. It is a building with a high patrimonial value which has been under a process of restoration and preservation through the Historian Office of Havana.

The house of the Marquis de Arcos was built in the place of the Plaza de la Catedral when it was an unimportant place.  At that time the plaza was known as Plaza de la Ciénaga (The Swamp Plaza) because the place was a low area where springs flew on one side and an inlet on the other side.

According to specialists, the house of the Marquis de Arcos is one of the best exponents of the residential architecture in Cuba and it is due to its elegance and perfect connection with qualities that were crucial in the structure of the wealthy Cuban families´ houses in the 18th century.

Today this building is a part of a cultural center related to others symbolic ones, among them we can mention the one that seats the Museo de Arte Colonial (Colonial Art Museum).

The Plaza de la Catedral (The Cathedral Square) is known as a tourist attraction.   It is described as the most harmonious complex of the Cuban capital.  The place where the Plaza is located, at the Havana urban historical center, was a prone to flooding area until the beginning of the 17th century that is why it was known as Plaza de la Ciénaga (The Swamp Plaza).  During the course of the years those lands were drained and some buildings were constructed there.  There is a very important religious building in the Plaza since 18th century. It is the Cathedral of Havana, which dates from the year 1748.