Colonial Cathedral

 We toured the Colonial Cathedral (Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Virgin).  It was completed in 1654, and was rich in carvings covered with gold leaf.  I don’t know that I’ve ever seen so much gold in one building.  The cathedral houses over 400 paintings and within them there are signs of the blending of the Catholic and Inca.  The Last Supper, for instance, includes guinea pig on the table and the bread looks like Inca bread.  In other paintings, instead of camels, the artists painted llama.  And since the local artists were not allowed to sign their painting, they put a self-portrait somewhere in the painting.  There are a number of sculptures (this being the major repository of Cusco’s colonial art) within the walls of the cathedral and they are sometimes removed and paraded around the square during significant celebrations.  The building also holds archeological artifacts and relics.  The sad thing about this cathedral is that the Spanish tore apart Saksaywaman to build it and used Inca laborers to do so.  Interesting to note that even today we see signs of one culture attempting to destroy another.  The world can obviously use more tolerance and compassion.

Photos were not allowed inside any of the cathedrals but I found this photo online so borrowed it to show you the amount of gold detail that was in many of the altars.  It was quite amazing.