THE CATHEDRAL OF CUSCO

The first Cusco Cathedral was built in 1539 at the Suntur Wasi, current Iglesia del Triunfo, but in 1560 there was an order to build a new cathedral on the Kiswir Kancha lot, palace of Inca Wiracocha. The actual Cathedral was declared built in 1664, more than a century after.

The design is constituted by a latin-cross base, the façade has a Renaissance style, very ornamental, and it contains the best manifestations of colonial goldsmith and wood carving, as well as a valuable collection of canvases from the Escuela Cusqueña (Academy of Cusco). There are two auxiliary chapels on its both sides: Capilla del Triunfo and Jesus, Maria y Jose.

The building process had two stages. First, they constructed the Capilla del Triunfo over the old Suntur Wasi (House of God) temple.

Style and design

Due to the crucial period when it was constructed, the Cusco Cathedral inherits the Gothic-Renaissance hybridism of the great Spanish Cathedrals of the XVI century, adding to that the irruption of the patent baroque style in its enormous front-altarpiece and its monumental towers.

Just as in Lima, its storey-lounge is composed by three aisles with two sections of side chapels and a plane front wall. Its ribbed vaults, taken from the late Gothic, lay over the cross-shaped columns of Renaissance style. Here everything is made of stone and it gives the sense of great solidity, which constitutes the main difference with the characteristic lightness of the Lima Cathedral.

Many of its stone blocks have an Incan origin and were brought from the neighboring fortress of Sacsayhuamán.


Richness of Altars and Chapels

The main altar, made of silver, is one of the latest works of the whole structure. It has the shape of a baldachin and it represents the introduction of the neoclassic style to the city. It was constructed in the 1792-1803 period by the architect Villegas and the silversmith Pinelo, under the sponsorship of the Bishop Bartolomé María de Las Heras.

In spite of the sobriety of its columns, many of its decorative elements seem to stick to the baroque traditions so established in the city. All the lateral chapels are enclosed by amazing golden railings and crowns with carvings allusive to the titular invocation. It's worth it to mention the altars of the venerated Señor de los Temblores (Lord of the Tremors) located at the Epistle side (right), which are rich in gold and silver offerings, as well as the altar of the Virgen de los Remedios (Virgin of the Remedies), Valencian devotion introduced by the Spaniard Alonso de Monroy y Cortés. In this side we can also find the so-called "capilla de la Platería" ("Silversmith Chapel"), where we can appreciate an amazing demonstration of the Cathedral treasures. Its most precious jewel is the enormous silver small temple that is used as a processional portable platform for the Corpus Christi. It was a gift from the Bishop Friar Bernardo de Serrada in 1731.

QORICANCHA

Location: Intersection of El Sol Avenue and Santo Domingo Street. Visiting Hours: Monday-Saturday from 8:00 to 17:00)

It was one of the most worshiped and respected temples of the city. "The gold precinct", as it was known, was a sacred place where people venerated the maximum Incan god: the INTI. For that reason, people could only get there fasting, barefooted and with some load on their backs as a sign of humility, in compliance with the indications of the main priest "Wilaq Umuo". According to the history, when the Spaniards broke into the temple, they did not respect any of the aforementioned rules.

How to get there

If you want to visit this place after having discovered the marvels of the Sacred Temple of Coricancha, follow our recommendations and enjoy an environment of sacred mysticism.

You can get to the temple from the Main Square through Callejón de Loreto "Intiqhicllu", cross Maruri Street and after Pucamarca turn to the left so as to go forward through Pampa del Castillo. In this place, there were no edifications during the Incan time, instead of that, there was a series of cultivation terraces that descended to the river and it was a farm called Mancochuqui, dedicated to Huanacauri, the main tomb of the Incas.

The route leads to an enlarged square in where the church of Santo Domingo is located. This space was Intipampa, the Sun square or plain, which used to be twelve meters wider until the constructors of the colonial church decided to reduce it so as to construct their building.

Description

The front had a beautiful wall originating from the finest ashlars, simply decorated with a continuous gold band that was one palm high and was situated three meters from the floor, and a ceiling made of fine straw that was delicately cut.

One of the blocks of the second course has three holes that could have been used to evacuate the rain water of the inner yard, or as a leak for the chicha of the offerings. According to the experiments of Augusto León Barandiarán, if you knock inside the holes you will be able to hear the musical notes re, la and mi.

The stones that make up the temple have a slight boss in both sides, which show the sober aesthetics of the Incas. Formerly, the triangular atrium used as an entrance to the colonial temple did not exist and the wall rotated in right angle in the direction of Ahuacpinta, a street that still keeps a section of the original wall, which is almost sixty meters long.

In the opposite side of this street, the wall forms a curve rotating more than 90 degrees and it continues with a soft curve that was cut during the construction of the temple. The Coricancha wall crowned a system of cultivation terraces that descended to the river.

One of the great stone monuments of the Inca architecture was Sacsayhuaman, which was actually a Royal House of the Sun in Cuzco Inca there were many Royal Houses of the Sun, one was Coricancha and over the Poquencancha.

The Royal Houses of the Sun were privileged complexes, much like small towns within the city of Cusco, where God was worshiped general, the Sun, but which also less  Sacsayhuaman is an archaeological site located north of the main square of Cusco, 1 km. of the colonial church of San Cristobal. In older times, the Valley of Cusco or Watanay, as it is called because of the river of the same name that crosses the area was not formed by the fertile land that later would characterize him, but instead presented three lakes distributed along 30 km.

For this reason, it was determined that the geological formation of Yunkaypata (where Sacsayhuaman is located) has about 80 million years and is of marine origin, since it contains fossilized remains of sea urchins and other organisms in that habitat. Erosion and the environment wore away the great masses of limestone found there. Just here there is a kind of granite named slide, which has polishing action is due to the seismic fault lines.

Sacsayhuaman

Located at 2 km north from Cusco. It is an Inca fortress builded with enormous masses of polished stone, they have up to 9 meters high and 325 tons, to face Antis, a group from the Amazonía. In addition to the imposing fortress, that has a zigzag form, and a set of platforms, there are other two important sites: the Rodadero, a species of natural slides, and the Suchuna or throne of the Inca, a pre-Incan astronomical observatory, where the physicist Julio Palomino, from the National University of San Antonio Abad of Cusco (UNSAAC), obtained a measurement unit (4.6 cm) that would have been used in Cumbemayo (Cajamarca) and Chavín (Ancash). The celebration of the Inti Raymi is made in its esplanade in the month of June

Kenko

 At 3 km of Cusco. Highlights the circular amphitheatre and the “chingana” or entrance to the labyrinth of seminatural underground galleries. It is a singular ceremonial and cult center. It was also a temple dedicated to the Earth. It includes numerous statures, cuts and ceremonial channels carved on rock. Incas worshiped an enormous rock of 6 meters high.

Puca pucara

Fortress formed by platforms, staircases and niches. Puka-Pukara means “red fortress”. Is located at 6 km from Cusco on the way that leads towards Antisuyo (Incas Jungle province). Its main function was the point of control of the Inca Trail. It was also an administrative and military center.

Tambomachay

Located at 7 km from Cusco, at 3,700 meters above sea level. Popularly known like the “Inca Baths”, it was an important worship center and the water temple. This archaeological set is formed by water channels, finely worked walls and windows that show the extraordinary architectoaial level of the Incas and its high dominion of hydraulic engineering.

How to get there

You can go to the archaeological park both on foot and by car. If you want to get there on foot, journeys last 30 minutes approximately, whereas it will take you 10 minutes if you go by car. There are several routes. As of the Main Square it is possible to go up through Cuesta del Almirante, Plateros or through Suecia. All these streets end in the circumvallation that leads to Sacasyhuamán. Through it you will get directly to the entrance control booth of the archaeological park.

The route on foot

Through Cuesta del Almirante
If you go up through it, it is necessary to continue through Córdoba Street until the Small Square of Nazarenas, in this place you will take Nazarenas Street and then Pumacurco up to the end. Another possibility is to go through Cuesta del Almirante until Ataud Street and continue through this street and then all the way through Huaynapata. This route takes about 30 minutes.

Through Suecia
Another pedestrian route starts in Suecia Street, turns in Huaynapata and follows through Resbalosa until reaching Circunvalación.

Through Plateros
If you walk through it you must continue through Saphi and then take the steep Amargura slope that leads to Circunvalación.


By car
If you rather go by car, you can take Suecia Street up to Salesiano School, turn to the right and continue through Circunvalación.  You can also start in Plateros, continue through Saphi Street and finish in the circumvallation.  A taxi to Sacsayhuamán, without including the tour, might cost 5 soles. If you prefer, you can take the buses of Puputi Street that go to the Sacred Valley, the ticket costs 3 soles.

SAN BLAS NEIGHBORHOOD

San Blas is a craftsmen neighborhood and is located a few blocks of the main square. In the church of the place there is a famous and symbolic pulpit that was beautifully carved in wood of a single piece about 400 years ago. Around the church, workshops and stores of artists and craftsmen bloom.

The most famous Cusco craftsmen are the Mendivil, creators of the emblematic and multicolor archangels and figures of long neck, made of paste and wood, its work is known world-wide. Other San Blas craftsmen families, that enjoys of equal prestige are: Olave family that has beautifull art pieces and Merida family that is the creator of the renowned grotesque art; following this prestigious artists we have the factories of Aguayo, Aguilar, Alvarez, Segovia, Saloma and Gutiérrez, among others.

San Blas is a district of special magnetism and personality. Their architecture and its picturesque streets make it a world-wide attraction. It is located at only two blocks from the main square of Cusco, and you will arrive to it following Triunfo Street, then  Hatun Rumiyoc street where the twelve angle rock stands and finaly La Cuesta de San Blas street. Is also famous by its Chicherias that is a kind of Inca bar where they sell “Chicha” an old fermented alcoholic beverage. Saturdays craft fairs take place.