Echoes of Empire: New Granadan Identity in the Mural Paintings of the <i>Casa del Fundador</i> in Tunja

This study reinterprets the late-sixteenth-century murals in the House of the Founder in Tunja, Colombia, analyzing how visual art shaped colonial identity in the New Kingdom of Granada. Rediscovered in the mid-twentieth century, the painted ceilings on the second floor feature heraldic, religious, and emblematic imagery. By juxtaposing these murals with Juan de Castellanos’s Elegías de varones ilustres de Indias, written in Tunja at the time such homes were being decorated, and historical documents, this essay argues that the iconographic program articulates the identity of encomenderos—conquerors and their descendants—affirming their heritage and moral authority. The murals celebrate the noble ancestry, martial prowess, and Catholic devotion of Miguel Suárez Figueroa, the founder’s heir, portraying him as an ideal ruler during nobility verification inspections. This article demonstrates how art functioned as a tool for sociopolitical negotiations, solidifying the status of second-generation colonizers, and invites further exploration of visual culture’s role in the Spanish Americas.