(Reuters) - Argentina's famed Teatro Colon, one of the world's great opera houses, will reopen on Monday after a three-year restoration of the country's leading cultural gem

The ornate, 2,700-seat Colon was built in 1908 and modeled after Milan's La Scala. World renowned for its natural acoustics, the theater is reopening its doors as Argentina holds bicentennial celebrations.
The restoration effort has focused on returning the Colon -- home to a treasure of French stained glass and Italian pink marble stairwells -- to its glory days.
The theater, which hosts opera and ballet performances, first opened when Argentina was among the world's 10 wealthiest nations during the early 1900s. Since then, the country has struggled to recover from repeated economic crises.
The Colon's make-over included restoring the theater's exterior, some of its original floors and chandeliers and the installation of natural air-conditioning system among other changes.