Embargo Hinders Restoration of Hemingway Home in Havana

Restoration has begun on the Cuban hilltop villa where Ernest Hemingway hung his hat and hunting trophies for 21 years, from 1939 to 1960. The swashbuckling author produced some of his most brilliant works at the house where he lived after leaving Key West.

But as repairs progress, U.S. conservationists say the project lacks funding and materials they are eager to supply –assistance banned under the terms of the 40-year-old U.S. embargo on travel and trade with the Caribbean island.

What´s more, they say the home might suffer irreparably if they aren´t allowed to play a larger role. A Cuban team launched emergency preservation efforts earlier this year, drying sodden walls and adjusting sagging ceiling beams. But it´s a major job, with limited resources.

“The house is treasured by the Cubans. They´re not going to let this house sink into the ground and rot,” said Jenny Phillips, co-founder of the Boston-based Hemingway Preservation Foundation, which was denied a U.S. license last year to help fund restoration efforts.

“But in a resource-deprived economy, the work may not be done at the highest standards,” she warned. “That is why we feel a sense of urgency and responsibility to get on board.”

The foundation sent a team of experts to Cuba last week to study needed repairs under a special travel license issued by the U.S. Treasury Department. Even when they finish their feasibility study later this year, it´s unclear how they will put their findings to work. The group will reapply to the Treasury Department for a restoration license in November, Phillips said, but has no guarantee of receiving one.

The U.S. Treasury Department, which overseas U.S. embargo regulations, allows Americans to travel to Cuba for educational and humanitarian purposes, but not to promote tourism. It deemed the Hemingway house a tourist draw, and thus banned financial help.