Mira-Nila House

The Mira-Nila House is a historic mansion building in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. Situated along Mariposa Street in Cubao, the building owned by the Benitez family is a declared Heritage House by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines,^[1] and one of the only two such declared houses in Metro Manila along with the Lichauco Heritage House in Santa Ana, Manila. The building currently houses a museum.^[2]

Mira-Nila House
General information
Status	Completed
Architectural style	Art Deco
Town or city	Quezon City
Country	Philippines
Coordinates	14°36′41.26″N 121°3′0.18″E
Completed	1929
Owner	Benitez family
Technical details
Floor count	4
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Francisca and Conrado Benítez
Designations	Heritage House (2011-04-07; by the NHCP)
Website
https://www.miranila.org
References
[1][2]

Architecture and design

Historical marker installed by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines that states the house's declared heritage status.

The Mira-Nila is an Art Deco building inspired from the design of houses of similar architectural style in Florence, Italy. The house is four storeys high, has a basement, and a tower which served as an observation point. The design of the building was reportedly largely unaltered.^[1] The house's name came from the phrase "mira a Manila" ("look at Manila"), exclaimed by Helena Benitez, daughter of the owners of the house, when a fire broke out inside Intramuros in the 1930s.^[3]

A catalogue of Florentine houses from a Magazine brought home by three sisters of Francisca and Conrado Benítez from a Europe trip served as reference for the design. The Benitez couple themselves were responsible for the architectural design of the building and opted not to commission an architect.^[1]