"This tomb belongs to Don Francisco de Almansa, canon of this holy principal church and commissioner of the Holy Inquisition, and to his heirs." There are many other interesting inscriptions. In one of the chapels is an artistic gem, a well preserved picture of Our Lady of Antigua, presented by Ferdinand and Isabella who are represented in an attitude of devotion at the foot of the Virgin. It is probably by Antonio del Rincon, their court painter. Other very old and obscure paintings in the church are ascribed to Velazquez or Murillo. Another chapel, adorned with the Dominican coat of arms in marble relief, is the resting place of Dominican celebrities. The oldest Christian church in the new world was that of San Nicolas, founded by Governor Nicolas de Ovando in 1502. It was suffered to go to ruin, then restored and used as a military hospital and then again abandoned to decay until, overgrown with weeds and almost roofless, it was latterly used by a blacksmith as his workshop. The suggestion was frequently made that it be converted into a museum of Dominican antiquities, but the matter was neglected too long and in 1909 the historic building was condemned and the front portion demolished, but the groined arch over the presbytery remains. The most picturesque ruin of the city is that of the church of San Francisco, erected by the Franciscan monks about 1504 at the most conspicuous point in the city, and which is now, after the destruction of San Nicolas church, the oldest church ruin in America. It was the largest church in old Santo Domingo. Here were deposited and probably still rest, the remains of Bartholomew Columbus, the brother of the Discoverer. The church and convent, like several other churches of the city, were badly damaged by the earthquake of 1751 but were rebuilt better than before. When the Haitians came the church was abandoned; in 1824 it was assigned to the negro immigrants from the United States as a Methodist church, but it was allowed to go to complete ruin and much of its masonry was utilized by the Haitian rulers. A small part of the monastery has been rebuilt for use as an asylum for the insane. The Franciscan community was one of the wealthiest of the city, and fronting on the city's principal market still stands a large house formerly belonging to it and known as the "Casa del Cordon," "House of the Cord," because of a Franciscan's girdle hewn in stone over the doorway. Tradition says that Diego Columbus resided here while his palace was under construction.