The Matutano Daudén house is an excellent example of 18th century palatial architecture in rural areas.
It is a building of great dimensions, of whitewashed masonry, with three heights in its main facade, to the street Ondevilla. On the first floor is the lintel doorway, with garlands on the jambs, entablature and carved cartouche with the date 1773. On the main floor there are four balconies with carved woodwork and simple grilles.
The rear part has four floors. In the second one there are two balconies on stone corbels and, in the third one, two more on large iron brackets. The upper floor preserves a stone mullioned window with small poly-lobed arches.
Inside, there is a large hallway with an imperial staircase, which has lattice railings and wooden handrails and is covered with a groin vault with a decorated keystone and windows in the lunettes. The entrance to the stairway is framed by a double segmental arch, with a central shield of two rampant lions and an eagle. The floor of the hallway is a pebbled floor with figures.
The private rooms are distributed according to an enfilade system, i.e., arranged linearly without the need for communication corridors.
In one of the rooms of the house there is a frieze painted with scenes of life in La Iglesuela: agricultural work of harvesting and gathering fruit; felling trees and peasants working with the help of oxen; procession to the hermitage of the Virgen del Cid. hermitage of the Virgen del CidThe scene of shepherds; bullfighting; and a hunt, on horseback and on foot, with greyhounds. It also preserves a rococo oratory and interesting furniture.
Although the house existed before, its present appearance is due to a thorough renovation carried out in 1773 on the initiative of one of the family members, Sebastián Daudén. The quality of the works carried out, together with their chronology, has led us to believe that the architects may have been the same ones who executed the Baroque works of the Virgen del Cid hermitage or of parish church.
The house is currently a four-star Hospedería of the Government of Aragon. It is worth going inside to visit the entrance hall and, if possible, the dining room, to see the rich main rooms and the mural paintings.
