Take a good look at this building. It looks like a giant block of stone that has been cracked open, doesn't it? That is exactly what local architect Diego Van der Laat intended. It mimics a raw piece of jade split down the middle to let the light in. For decades, the treasures inside were tucked away on the eleventh floor of an insurance company headquarters, accessible to very few. It wasn't until 2014 that this collection moved from that high-security corporate vault to this striking public landmark, finally bringing these cultural riches out into the light.
But... why did an insurance company own a museum's worth of jade? Well, in the 1970s, looting was rampant here. Fidel Tristán Castro, the president of the National Insurance Institute, or INS, decided to intervene. He treated history like a patient in need of rescue. He directed the INS to aggressively purchase jade from private collectors to stop it from being sold abroad. This corporate intervention saved thousands of pieces from the black market.
Inside, you will find the world's largest collection of American jade. The craftsmanship is unbelievable. Jade is an incredibly tough stone. Yet, pre-Columbian artisans carved it using only wood, leather strings, and sand. A single pendant could take hundreds of hours of rubbing and grinding to complete. You will also see the mysterious Diquís spheres-perfectly round stone balls made by indigenous sculptors using simple stone hammers. It is a testament to human ingenuity.
Ready for more history? Look up toward the yellow fortress-like building on the hill. That is our next destination. Let's walk about three minutes to the National Museum of Costa Rica.
