The Armella Spitalier Cultural Foundation (FCAS) opened its doors in April 2004. It was initially established to house and showcase the Armella Spitalier family's collection of pre-Hispanic artifacts.
Around 1962, "el cuate", as we used to call uncle Mario Armella Maza, bought an area of approximately 12,000 m² in Camino Real a Tetelpan, where he built his residence when he married my aunt Jean Gullette about a year after they were married. I was about nine years old when he invited me to take "fragments", it was there and since then that I became interested in primitive cultures. I was in the third year of elementary school at the Simon Bolivar School and my teacher was Mother "Angelita", a Zapotec nun, who one day asked, in a history class, if any of us had pieces of ancient cultures, to which I immediately raised my hand and the next day I presented myself with the things obtained at "cuate Mario's" house. Years went by when I traveled with my parents to places like Acolman and later, to Teotihuacan, my dad was interested in history and especially in the post-conquest era, so we visited with them to different parts of the country, I observed imagining the shapes of the broken potsherds and the function of the vessels and pieces.
I began to provide pieces to what little by little became a "collection" although after a while it became a collection and I began to restore and deepen the knowledge and appreciation of its meaning, so one day I began to realize the need to share all this with those interested, inside and outside the country, making use of English, German, French and Spanish languages and electronic technology.
At the Armella Spitalier Cultural Foundation, our mission is to contribute significantly to the dissemination and understanding of Mesoamerican knowledge through the study, conservation and exhibition of archaeological collections granted by the National Institute of Anthropology and History. Founded in April 2004, we have dedicated ourselves to investigate, restore and make known the rich cultural heritage of Mesoamerican civilizations, whose legacy is intrinsically linked to the primordial importance of the vessels safeguarded in our collection. Through restoration and conservation programs, we ensure that these cultural jewels are appreciated by present and future generations, seeking to make our past known through temporary national and international exhibitions.
In our quest to disseminate this historical legacy, we are committed to establishing alliances with other cultural and educational institutions, both nationally and internationally. Through collaboration and joint work, we seek to expand the scope of our activities and reach diverse and multidisciplinary audiences, always under the precepts of conservation, safeguarding and research of the archaeological heritage of the Mexican people. We aspire to be a reference in the research and study of Mesoamerican cultures, as well as an open space for the exchange of knowledge and mutual enrichment. Our efforts are directed towards the promotion of learning and intercultural understanding.
The Armella Spitalier Cultural Foundation acquires a permanent debt with the society, being a depository of the cultural riches of those civilizations that settled in our current territory before the arrival of the Spaniards. Honesty, cooperation, commitment to research and dissemination mark the main statutes that our organization pursues, seeking to improve every day in the strategies of approach with the general public and with this, to make known and contribute culturally in the recognition of our cultural roots as Mexicans.
