Their small size also makes them very suitable for a small house or apartment, but despite having been bred as a “miniature”, they are certainly neither delicate, nor toy-like … and, since they don’t

shed, you won’t spend all your time vacuuming pet hairs off the furniture. Miniature Schnauzers are loyal, loving dogs that make ideal pets, they are robust and love to have fun and they are also much less prone to genetic diseases than many other breeds.

As a show dog, Miniature Schnauzers also have something extra. Their unique salt and pepper coloring, with black and silver patches is attention-getting, particularly if they have been given some good, but basic, grooming.

The origins of the Miniature Schnauzer are not entirely clear, either they were bred from the standard Schnauzer, or they were created by inter-breeding between Schnauzers and the Affenpinscher or other small dog breeds. The second option is generally considered most likely.

However the breed was created, it was bred to create a smaller dog with the same characteristics and temperament as the full-size Schnauzer. Originating in Central Europe, the Schnauzer breed has been around for centuries and has been featured in art since the fourteenth century. Schnauzers have appeared in art by Albrecht Durer from 1892 and Lucas Cranach the Elder’s “The Crown of Thorns” from 1501, a statue, “Nightwatchman and his Dog” in the Stuttgart city centre dated 1620 clearly shows a Schnauzer either assisting or providing company for a city guard.

Richard Fifer

Located in one of the towns’ oldest neighborhoods, San Antonio, the Museum was created in support of the El Cano Archeological Park. Four houses belonging to local families were donated to make room for this small, yet culturally rich, museum. One of the attractive features of it is its location. It is surrounded by very well preserved colonial structures, that give the impression that time froze in the area and that it is still the 16^th century.

The museum has six permanent and one temporary or seasonal exhibition rooms. Amongst these rooms we can find the Pre-Columbian exhibit, the Spanish Conquest, an early 20th Century Living Room, El Cano archeological Park room and a Religious Art exhibit. Exhibits also include customs such as hunting, fishing and harvest collection thanks to a farming tradition that according to some research dates back to 2 8000 B.C.

The temporary exhibit changes on regular basis, always offering something different, such as exhibitions by local painters and art workshops.

Open Monday through Saturday’s from 9 to 4, the Museum offers to both local and foreigners a glimpse of what the town of Penonome looked like in the past centuries, as well as a point of comparison to all that the town has achieved development wise in the last few years. Penonome is a town of values that have been passed on from one generation to the next and this can be observed at the Museum.