"I'm going to close the Central Bank."
This was one of the promises that Javier Milei transformed into a flag during the campaign that led him to the presidency.
A symbolic flag?
The possible closure of the State agency responsible for executing monetary policies is also linked to dollarization, another of the promises.
And although economists and specialists put cold feet on both, the president returned to the fray: "Sooner or later, I am going to close the Central Bank," he said again recently.
As Clarín
said
before Milei's inauguration, the interest - a mixture of concern and confusion - in this institution took on an unexpected space.
The fact is that in Historical Protection Area 51 -APH Catedral al Norte-, in the Buenos Aires neighborhood of San Nicolás, the different buildings that are part of the Central Bank ecosystem have
a story to tell.
The
Central Bank building is not one, but rather a set of buildings that have different degrees of protection.
And one of the most picturesque is undoubtedly the one located at San Martín 275, which is
a National Historical Monument
(declared in 2005).
Fortunately, it was restored in 2023.
It is
the oldest bank building in the City of Buenos Aires.
Originally it was the headquarters of the Mortgage Bank of the Province of Buenos Aires and later of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation.
Indeed, before moving to its own Palace - the giant of Courts that was under construction for almost 40 years -,
the Court ruled from the Central Bank.
The Central Bank building was the headquarters of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation.
Photo CSJN
It was designed and built between 1872 and 1876 by the architects Henry Hunt and Hans Schroeder, both considered pioneers in the study of banking typology.
They also built the building where the "Héctor Carlos Janson" Historical and Numismatic Museum currently operates, at San Martín 216 (originally, the Stock Exchange);
also National Historical Monument.
In this area identified as
"The City"
, Hunt and Schroeder built other important works, but now demolished.
A curiosity about the Museum: it was called José Evaristo Uriburu until 2017 when the renowned collector Héctor Carlos Janson donated more than 2,800 pieces of gold, silver and bronze.
He was the greatest Argentine numismatist (died in 2019).
In his house in Wheelwright, Santa Fe, he gathered and cataloged some of the most important pieces in history: for example, what is considered the first national coin, minted in 1813 at the Potosí Mint by General Manuel Belgrano , carrying out orders from the Year XIII Assembly.
It has the Sol Patrio on one side and the seal of the General Constituent Assembly on the other.
"It became the most valuable piece in our collection and only two examples of this coin exist," the museum highlights.
By the way, the museum can be visited: free entry, Monday to Friday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Restoration work on the historic façade of the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic.
Photo BCRA
Returning to the main building, its restoration focused on the façade, which is removed from the municipal line.
This detail allows you to appreciate each particularity even more: columns, pilasters, sculptures, the clock and the Argentine shield located on the crown, in addition to the ornaments.
The search for this restoration work was
to return to the original colors of the building,
for that purpose studies were carried out - stratigraphic searches and laboratory analysis - to determine what it was like in its origin.
Although historical photographic documentation is essential in these tasks, logically age does not always allow colors to be determined reliably.
The front of the Central Bank building was restored last year.
Photo: Emmanuel Fernández
About "The City of Buenos Aires"
According to the museum's historical data, the beginning of this area of the City could be located around 1822. Precisely at San Martín 142;
The Discount Bank or Banco de Buenos Ayres, later Banco Nacional, operated there.
That year the first banknote was issued and put into circulation.
Today the Banco Provincia operates
on that plot of San Martín Street
and on the façade, two large plaques commemorate these historical events.
"After the fall of Rosas, great financial activity began. The construction of
imposing bank buildings
began , including the first Stock Exchange", headquarters of the museum.
Former Bank of London, by architect Clorindo Testa.
Photo Gerardo Dell Oro
Associates, Hunt and Schroeder were pioneers in bank construction in this "Cathedral to the North" area.
Precisely the monumental imprint of the buildings sought to give an impression of security, importance and reliability.
It was almost 100 years before the famous architect
Clorindo Testa
arrived to break all the molds with his headquarters for the Bank of London (today Banco Hipotecario), one of the transcendental works of modern architecture in Argentina.
This concrete icon turned 50 years old in 2016.
Central bank.
The building of the institution that President Milei wants to close is a National Historical Monument.
Photo: Emmanuel Fernández
Central bank.
The building of the institution that President Milei wants to close is a National Historical Monument.
Photo: Emmanuel Fernández
Central bank.
The building of the institution that President Milei wants to close is a National Historical Monument.
Photo: Emmanuel Fernández
Restoration work on the historic facade of the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic, 2023. Photo BCRA
S.C.