Cusco cathedral was built on the site of two ancient buildings located on the main square in Cusco: the ancient temple of Suntur Wasi (God's House), nowadays Iglesia del Triunfo, and the Palace of the Inca Wirococha.
When the Spanish city was founded in the year 1534, it was agreed that the cathedral would be built over Suntur Wasi, and the original church was built on that site. Later on this building was extended to adjacent plots and in 1560, construction of the cathedral as we know it today commenced, with a surface area of 4,000 m2. The work was to finish in the year 1654, after 94 years of building, not without problems.
The original plans were drawn up by Juan Miguel de Veramendi. Other Spanish architects and priests also collaborated. All the labourers were indigeneous.
This building was built in the Renaissance style, with a Latin cross layout, three naves and ten side chapels. It has three processional aisles and transepts that communicate with two side churches: the Church of Triumph and the Church of the Holy Family.
The entrance to the cathedral is through the Church of Triumph, which is built on the site of the former main church. This location was the site of battles between conquistadores and the indigenous population. The Spaniards' victory was attributed to divinity, as according to ancient legend the Virgin of Descent and the apostle St. James came down from Heaven and helped the conquistadores to secure victory.
Although almost the work was carried out in the same period, there are many differences in terms of styles and schools, partly due to the fact that most of the buildings were completed by indigenous workers that had no consolidated artistic tradition or defined schools.
The paintings reflect the influence of the so-called "Cusquenian School", which was famed throughout the continent. The interior, which is decorated with cedar and alder woods, also contains paintings by renowned artists, embossed silver works and carvings made by Martín Torres and Melchor Huamán. Also, of particular note are the pulpit and all of the furnishings. The central nave houses the Main Altar or the Principal Altar of the cathedral, which is made of granite. There is an image of the Virgin of Descent on the upper part.
The Sacristy is known as the "Pictorial Room" because of the canvases representing biblical scenes that are housed in its interior. It also houses beautiful imagenes of saints, and the cathedral's most valuable jewels.
The altar of Our Lord of Unupunku is located off the sacristy. The name means "water" and "door". It refers to a tradition according to which the cathedral was built on a lake whose waters were visible when one lifted the stones in front of the altar. The reality is that it is one of the many springs to be found at the location.
There are several chapels. The most important are:
Chapel of Our Lady of the Nativity
This is a simple, austere chapel, with a crypt at the front, containing the corpses of the bishops and archbishops of Cusco. Over the gate with the railings, there is a canvas recalling the terrible earthquake of 1650.
Chapel of Our Lady of Choqonchaka
It contains a beautiful baroque altar in the Cusquenian art style depicting the Immaculate Conception.
Chapel of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
Known as "la Linda" (the Beautiful), because of the beautiful features of the image. The baroque altar was made by Martín de Torres.
Chapel of Saint Joseph
With a golden altar and imagenes of St. Joseph and the Child Jesus.
Chapel of Our Lord of Earthquakes
This chapel contains the cathedral's most important statue of Christ. He is considered to be the Sworn Patron Saint of Cusco and is taken out on procession on Easter Monday. Legend has it that it was a gift from the Emperor Carlos V.
The Door of Pardon
This is the main door of the church. Inside stands the "Altar of Pardon", with the canvas depicting Our Lady of the Nativity, which according to the legend, was a gift from the Emperor Carlos V to the city of Cusco.
The choir stalls
Carved in cedarwood, the choir stalls are an authentic work in the Baroque style, housing 42 imagenes of carved saints inside. They are believed to have been completed by the priest Diego Arias.
Peru
With a surface area of over one million Km2, Peru is a land that has always been shrouded in magic, partly because of its great variety of cultures and also due to its great geographical diversity.
Given its location, it is a tropical country, but most of its climate is altered by the Humboldt current. The climate is tropical continental in the Amazon region.
Its borders are very artificial: to the north are Ecuador and Colombia, on the south there is a short border with Chile, to the east are Brazil, Bolivia and Colombia and on the west, it embraces the Pacific, with 2,000 km of coast.
Its landscape is very varied. It is known as a country of high plains and the Andes mountains, but the huge Amazonian region is often forgotten: with very different characteristics, it occupies over 65% of the country's natural substrate.
Cusco
Located at a distance of 960 kilometres from Lima, the capital city of the country, in the department of Cusco. This department is located in the South-East of Peru. It covers a surface area of 76,329 km2 and is located at a height of 3,399 metres. Its population is 1,028,763 inhabitants. The Eastern Range of the Andes crosses the territory.
How to get there
Road access is extremely difficult, so much so that it takes about 24 hours to get there from Lima. By train, there is a daily service from Arequipa, through Juliaca, which takes about 20 hours to get to Cusco. There are daily flights from Lima and Arequipa, Juliaca or Puno.
This beautiful city in Peru holds the most spectacular remains of the Inca empire.
Cusco, the Inca capital, was the holy city, the centre of the political, economic and social activities of the Inca empire and one of the oldest cities in Peru.
Legend has it that it was founded by Manco Cápac and Mama Ocllo, the children of the Sun god that emerged from Titicaca Lake to look for a place to be the centre of a great kingdom. This couple arrived in Cusco and taught the arts of textiles, ceramic, smithery and agriculture to its primitive inhabitants.
The Incas were not originally from Cusco. They arrived in the area around the year 1,200 A.D. and after several battles and alliances, dominated the valley and expanded further afield. One evident sign of the great urban development registered by the city is the enormous blocks that made up its great wall. The Spaniards arrived on 23rd March 1534, making Cusco the symbol of miscegenation between different cultures.
In Pizarro's time, the population of Cusco was 300,000 inhabitants, which gives an idea of its importance. The arrival of a new culture transformed the Inca temples and palaces into colonial mansions and churches, with European architectural elements being integrated into its urban physiognomy. In 1650, Cusco suffered an intense earthquake that almost destroyed the city. Later on, there were numerous resistance movements against colonisation, such as Tupac Amaru in the year 1870.
After the Declaration of Independence, the liberator José San Martín converted Cusco into a department on 26th April 1822. It finally broke away from the Spanish crown in January 1825 when Simon Bolívar arrived in the city.
Later on, it lost in importance to Lima due to its distance from the sea and for geopolitical reasons. In the 19th century, its population was just 40,000 inhabitants.
In 1933, the Congress of Americanists, meeting in Argentina, declared the city to be the "Archaeological Capital of South America" and in 1978, the mayor of the world's major cities, meeting in Milan, declared it to be a "World Cultural Heritage".
In 1983, the city entered its golden age, as that year, in Paris, Cusco was declared by the UNESCO to be a "World Cultural Heritage". The Peruvian Constitution of 1993 declared Cusco to be the "Historical Capital of the Country"
Nowadays, Cusco is a beautiful museum city that, thanks to the improved communications with the capital, now has a population of about 200,000 inhabitants and is visited by a great number of tourists from all over the world.
Promperú
Edificio Mitinci, piso 13
Calle Uno Oeste, Urbanización Córpac, Lima 27
Telephone number 224 3118
Tourist information 2249355
Tourist Protection Service
Calle de la Prosa, 138; Lima 41
Telephone number 2247888
Free hotline from the provinces 080042579
Peruvian Association of Travel Agencies
Pasaje Antonio Roca,121
Urbanización Santa Beatriz; Lima 1
Telephone numbers 3326692 and 4331111
National Chamber of Tourism
Santander, 170; Lima 18 Telephone numbers 2214281 and 4224515
About Cusco and its cathedral
www.qosqo.com/qosqoes/catedral.html
All about Cusco
www.terrainka.com
About the city of Cusco
www.redperuana.net/elpais
History of Cusco
www.allperu.com
All about Macchu -Picchu
www.unsaac.edu.pe/cusco
Tourist information about Cusco
www.cuscoonline.com
All about Cusco
www.enjoyperu.com
www.damisela.com/viajes/peru/cusco/
www.cuscoweb.com/cuscoinfo
General information about Cusco
www.cusco.turincon.com Sightseeing, the mandatory visits
http://guiadelcusco.perucultural.org.pe/
About the department of Cusco
http://www.adonde.com/turismo/cusco/index.htm
