KAMILLE PATRIZIA C.

SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture

of Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House

Name of Property:

Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House

Location:

1515 Peñafrancia Street corner Santo Sepulcro St., Paco, Manila (NCR)

Geographical coordinates:

Latitude 14 deg 34’ 47” N, Longitude 120 deg 59’ 49” E (After GoogleEarth Pro, 2019)

Date of declaration/designation/marker:

1998 | Historical Marker

Prepared by:

Ar. Kamille Patrizia C. Sepidoza

Museum Researcher II, Architectural Arts and Built Heritage Division, National Museum

Reviewed by:

Ar. Arnulfo F. Dado

Museum Curator II and Chief, Architectural Arts and Built Heritage Division, National Museum

Date prepared:

18 December 2019
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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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I. Introduction

Placuna Placenta or the window pane shell is a bivalve1 with a very translucent shell that was used
traditionally in windows of Asian dwellings, commonly called Capis Shell. It is found on muddy or sandy
substrata from shallow water depths of up to 100 meters, usually in bays, coves and estuaries. The species
has a wide distribution including the Gulf of Aden and around India, the Malay Peninsula, the southern coasts
of China and along the northern coasts of Borneo to the Philippines. Although window pane shells are
harvested in other parts of the world, the major producing country is the Philippines. 2 It was found throughout
the island in certain definite areas such as Manila Bay, Bacoor Bay, Parañaque to Cavite, also in Bohol,
Capis, Masbate and Iloilo.

Structures in the Philippines commonly used this indigenous material for windows during the Spanish Colonial
Period. It became one of the most distinct and beautiful architectural detail of local buildings. These window
pane shells last for generations, they are durable enough to withstand typhoon rains and winds. The
translucency of the shells allow light to pass through but still giving privacy. Back then, the Capis windows
are easily repaired, it was constructed in such a way that when a shell is damaged it can be easily replaced
with a new one.3 Manila alone uses several million capis shells on the houses in a year.

In lieu with the study of the indigenous material, Placuna Placenta or Capis Shells, as used in the architecture
of historical buildings, the National Museum – Architectural Arts and Built Heritage Division conducted several
on-site architectural study and documentations in various historical structures. One of the identified structures
was the Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House4 located in Paco, Manila. The NM-AABHD team5 on-site
investigation was limited to visual inspections, measurements of windows and interviews with a key person6.

II. Historical Background

The Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House was originally built in 1864 by a Spanish Count and is located at 1515
Peñafrancia Street corner Santo Sepulcro Street in Paco, Manila, thus obtaining the name, Villa Peñafrancia
(illustration 1). It survived the Philippine Revolution and the Philippine-American War as well as the three (3)
strong earthquakes in July 1880, that seriously damaged many structures in Manila.

Villa Peñafrancia was bought by Jose P. Laurel in 1926 after winning a big insurance case. This served as
his family residence for 29 years from 1926 to 1955 before he moved to his retirement home in Mandaluyong.
The 600 sqm. house seats on a property consists of 1,297.10 sqm. of land. The house was inherited by his
third son, Sotero H. Laurel, which he donated to the Jose P. Laurel Memorial Foundation. It was left to

1
Bivalve. An aquatic mollusk that has a compressed body enclosed within a hinged shell, such as oysters, clams, mussels, and
scallops.
2
Based on “Fisheries and aquaculture of window-pane shells, The Malacologist Mini-Review, The Malacological Society of
London”
3
Based on “The Fishery Resources of the Philippine Islands. Part IV, Miscellaneous Marine Products, The Philippine, Journal of
Science, 1911”
4
The Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House is a Level II Historic Building designated by the National Historical Commission of the
Philippines on March 8, 1998
5
The NM-AABHD team, composed of Ar. Kamille Patrizia C. Sepidoza (Museum Researcher II), Ar. Armando Arciaga III and Mr.
Erick Estonanto (Museum Technician II), conducted an on-site architectural documentation of the capis shell (Placuna placenta)
in Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House by virtue of their permit to travel (National Museum Paghahanap ng Pook ng mga Tauhan Blg.
0022-AABHD on October 17, 2019).
6
Ms. Divine Jope, Library Assistant of Jose P. Laurel Memorial Foundation assisted the team during their visit on Jose P. Laurel
Ancestral House.
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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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caretakers and deteriorated but due to the Proclamation No. 5877 by the then President, Corazon Aquino,
restoration efforts led by Sotero Laurel and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (previously
known as National Historical Institute) were made to bring back the former grandeur of the house and to
honor Jose P. Laurel’s dedicated service in the Philippines. The restoration analysis commenced in 1994
while the actual implementation started in February 1997 and was completed in March 1998.

III. Architecture of Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House

The Laurel House was built in a Bahay na Bato style which was common during the Spanish Colonial Period.
The ground floor is made of adobe foundation and plastered adobe walls while the upper floor is dominated
with wooden floors and walls with wide capis shell windows. Apart from these distinct features, the entire
ground floor of the house has been installed with Machuca8 tiles as well as ornate window grilles, solid
hardwood door panels and narra balustered staircase. The second floor also has decorative grille works for
the ventanillas 9.

According to the Foundation’s records the narra balustered staircase (figure 1), the machuca floor tiles at the
ground floor and second floor, kitchen area (figure 2), and the solid hardwood door panels (figure 3), were all
maintained by repairing and restoring their looks. Malfunctioning hardware like doorknobs and hinges were
searched in antique shops. All the iron grille works were preserved on the ground floor, however, it was
decided to remove the grilles on the second floor to improve the facade. The original deteriorated molave
floor planks on the second floor had been replaced with new ones. Missing and broken capis shell windows
were restored and replaced. The frames of the windows were also updated using rollers for easy handling
instead of the original tongue and groove sliding mechanism.

To make the house more functional and serve its purpose as a museum, the Foundation decided to remove
some of the original partitions that separate the rooms while the ceilings of both floors were raised to their
maximum allowable height. These changes caused the house to appear more open and spacious. The rooms
have been air-conditioned to reduce the constant noise from vehicular traffic on Peñafrancia and Sto.
Sepulcro Streets, so aluminum sliding windows were installed in the interior. This allow the house to keep its
original appearance of the façade. Cathedral glass was also introduced to cover the opening of ventanillas
which only have grille works.

IV. Used of Capis Shells

Capis Shells on windows are typical during the Spanish Colonial Period. Bahay na Bato houses were
designed to take advantage of cooling breezes, so large windows surround the upper floor. The window
sashes commonly have capis shell panes that allow natural light to pass through even if it’s closed for privacy
or during stormy weather due to the shells’ translucent property. Built in 1860’s, Laurel House flaunt capis
shell sliding windows on the entire second floor (illustration 2) with sizes that vary for each area. The window
panels typically have three (3) divisions except for the Kitchen area which has only two (2) divisions.

7
Proclamation No. 587, Declaring the Year 1991 as Jose P. Laurel Centennial in Consonance with the Decade on Filipino
Nationalism
8
Machuca Tiles. Cement tiles with Mediterranean motifs originated from the Philippines during the 1900s.
9
Ventanillas. Small shuttered openings below the windows which provides natural ventilation.
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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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Sala/Cuarto

The window style in the living and bedroom dominate the whole second floor. The set of windows are
composed of six (6) sliding panels. Each panel is 145 cm in height and 57 cm in width, with a total span of
318 cm per set (illustration 3). There are four (4) sets of six (6) paneled windows (figure 4) on front façade
facing south, another four (4) sets on left façade facing west while five (5) sets on right façade facing east,
where the bedrooms and living room are located. The rear is toned down with just three (3) sets of (3) paneled
capis shell sliding windows (figure 5) with the same dimension on of panels.

The capis shells used are 40 to 45 millimeters in size (figure 6) and categorized as fourth flat or simple
fourths10. Each division has seven (7) pieces horizontally and seven (7) vertically of capis shells (figure 7),
equivalent to one hundred forty-seven (147) pieces per panel, considering the typical three (3) divisions. A
total of eleven thousand four hundred sixty-six (11,466) pieces was used on the six (6) paneled window sets
on the living room and bedrooms. Rear windows also have three (3) divisions on each panel, but the divisions
used only six (6) capis pieces vertically. With only three (3) sets of three (3) paneled windows, a total of one
thousand one hundred thirty-four (1,134) pieces was used.

Cocina

The kitchen located on the northwest also has capis sliding windows but with smaller size panels (figure 8).
The kitchen windows have the same number of pieces per divisions, except that they have only two (2)
divisions per panel and each set has four (4) panels. Three (3) smaller awning panels were also seen in the
area, with four (4) pieces horizontally and seven (7) pieces vertically (figure 9) while a fixed capis shell window
on the corner have seven (7) pieces, both vertically and horizontally. There would be nine hundred and
seventeen (917) capis pieces used in the kitchen area alone.

Ground Floor

There are also three (3) large casement capis shell windows with grille works at the bedrooms of ground floor
(figure 10), located on the east and rear side of the house. The casement windows are 181 cm in height and
a span 114 cm, with 57 cm width on each panel (illustration 4). Each has two divisions on both side of the
panel, with seven (7) horizontal pieces and nine (9) vertical pieces of capis shells on each pane. A total of
seven hundred fifty-six (756) pieces were used while the lower part of the panel has wooden pane.

V. Summary and Conclusion

The Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House is admired for its capis shell windows that cover the entire second floor
of the Spanish-old house. An estimated amount of fourteen thousand two hundred seventy-three (14,273)
pieces were used for these windows but these were greatly deteriorated after it was left by its occupants.
During its restoration, it could be assumed that the capis shells that were used to replace the damaged ones
were bought from existing local producers. Generally, the restoration of the house supported the economic
value of these indigenous material and showed its visual as well as physical importance to the architecture
of historical structures.

10
In trade, the square shells that are above 80 millimeters are classified as “head”. The so-called “first flat” and “first bent” or
simply “firsts” are shells that square from 75 to 80 mm., the “seconds” square from 70 to 75 mm., the “thirds” from 60 t0 70
mm. and shells that square less than 60 mm. are graded as “fourths”.
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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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VI. Maps, Illustrations and Photographs

Illustration 1. Location of Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House in Paco, Manila

Illustration 2. Floor plan of the second floor, showing the capis shell windows

KITCHEN
RESTROOMS
DINING
AREA

BEDROOM

BEDROOM

STAIRCASE

LIVING ROOM

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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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Illustration 3. Details of the typical window set located on sala/cuarto

Illustration 4. Details of the casement window located at the ground floor, bedrooms

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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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Figure 1. The original narra balustered railings of the stairs

Figure 2. The original machuca tile installed at the ground floor and second floor, kitchen area.

Figure 3. Hardwood door panels that were maintained during the restoration of the house

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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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Figure 4. Six (6) paneled capis shell window located on the living room and bedrooms

Figure 5. Three (3) paneled capis shell window located rear of the house facing north

Figure 6. Size of the capis shells used in the window panes

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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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Figure 7. Details of each division of the Capis shell window panel

Figure 8. Four (4) paneled – two (2) divisions capis shell sliding window on the kitchen area

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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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Figure 9. Three (3) awning windows at the rear of kitchen area

Figure 10. The casement window located on the ground floor

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KAMILLE PATRIZIA C. SEPIDOZA Capis Shell (Placuna Placenta) as used in Architecture
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VII. References

Jose P. Laurel Ancestral House

Articles

Alex Y. Vergara, History gets a makeover, Philippine Daily Inquirer, March 23, 1998

Isagani A. Cruz, The Peñafrancia house, Separate Opinion, Philippine Daily Inquirer, March 8, 1998

Records

Historical Summary of Peñafrancia Ancestral House, The Jose P. Laurel Memorial Foundation records

Identification of Significant Historical Structure, National Historical Commission of the Philippines, NHCP
(former National Historical Institute)

Placuna Placenta

Fisheries and aquaculture of window-pane shells, The Malacologist Mini-Review, The Malacological
Society of London

The Fishery Resources of the Philippine Islands. Part IV, Miscellaneous Marine Products, The Philippine,
Journal of Science, D. General Biology, Ethnology and Anthropology, December 1911

Florencio Talavera, The Window Shell, Bureau of Science, Manila

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