Peruvian architecture is the architecture carried out during any time in what is now

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

, and by Peruvian architects worldwide. Its diversity and long history spans from

ancient Peru The Andean civilizations were complex societies of many cultures and peoples mainly developed in the river valleys of the coastal deserts of Peru. They stretched from the Andes of southern Colombia southward down the Andes to Chile and northwest ...

, the

Inca Empire The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, ( Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The adm ...

Colonial Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed from ...

to the present day.

Peruvian colonial architecture The Peruvian colonial architecture, developed in the Viceroyalty of Peru between the 16th and 19th centuries, was characterized by the importation and adaptation of European architectural styles to the Peruvian reality, yielding an original archite ...

is the conjunction of European styles exposed to the influence of indigenous imagery. Early academia has tended to view the Spanish architectural and religious takeover as complete and swift, but revisionist history emphasizes the lasting role of the indigenous in religious architecture. Two of the most well-known examples of the

Renaissance period The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass idea ...

are the Cathedral of Santo Domingo and the Santa Clara church in Cusco. After this period, cultural mixture reached richer expression in the Baroque. Some examples of

Baroque architecture Baroque architecture is a highly decorative and theatrical style which appeared in Italy in the early 17th century and gradually spread across Europe. It was originally introduced by the Catholic Church, particularly by the Jesuits, as a means t ...

in Peru are the convent of San Francisco de Lima, the church of the Compañía and the facade of the University of Cuzco and, overall, the churches of San Agustín and

Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...

of Arequipa, its more beautiful exponents. The

wars of independence This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars Wars of national liberation or national liberation revolutions are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against for ...

left a creative emptiness that Neoclassicism of French inspiration could just fill. The 20th century is characterized by

eclecticism Eclecticism is a conceptual approach that does not hold rigidly to a single paradigm or set of assumptions, but instead draws upon multiple theories, styles, or ideas to gain complementary insights into a subject, or applies different theories i ...

, to which the constructive functionalism has been against. The most considerable example is Plaza San Martín in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

History of Peru Architecture

Peruvian architecture is surrounded by a wide range of elements from many architectures: its origins date back to the structures of the Incas, and later to colonial-era buildings, and Peruvian architects' transformation based on Baroque and Neoclassic European styles. Fortunately, a series of examples of Incan architecture stays intact, which was developed until the beginning of the Spanish conquest in 1532. By the middle of the 20th century, a period of modernization and construction appeared in Lima's historical center in 1988 UNESCO declared Lima's historical center a world heritage site, which inspired many laws designed to protect and care for the city's buildings.

Archaeological Sites

In Peru, the thousand-year-old architectural legacy of some of its many archaeological sites (19,903 to be exact). Here are some of the Archaeological Sites.

Machu Picchu

Located in the South of Peru, in the Urubamba Valley. Machu Picchu, Cuzco. It was built before the fifteenth century on the rocky promontory that connects the Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu mountains on the eastern slope of the Central Cordillera. It is stone buildings that makeup steps, terraces, and paths of a fortress that is wisely placed in its landscape. Throughout its existence, it has enjoyed a veil of mystery.

Pachacámac

Located in the South of Lima, in the Lurín Valley. This archaeological complex was the most important religious-ceremonial center of the central coast of Peru for more than 1500 years, during the pre-Inca and Inca periods.

Puruchuco

Located on the Northern coast of Lima, in the District of Ate. The construction of this architectural complex comes from the Inca culture. This monument was the palace of a curaca (ruler) where he lived and administered.

Chan Chan

Located on the northern coast of Peru, northwest of Trujillo. It is the largest adobe-built city in the Americas and the second-largest in the world. It is formed by nine citadels (small walled cities). The whole complex was the capital of the Chimor Kingdom and the Chimú culture.

Sacsayhuamán

Located north of the city of Cuzco. The large plaza, capable of holding thousands of people, was designed for communal ceremonial activities. Several of the large structures at the site may also have been used during rituals. A similar relationship to that between Cuzco and Sacsayhuamán was replicated by the Inca in their distant colony

Pikillaqta

Located in the district of Lucre, southeast of the city of Cuzco Pikillaqta is a village of the Wari people. Wari was the Centre village and other cities like Pikillaqta were influenced by it. The Wari also inhabited many other sites around the area.

Nazca Lines

Located in the Jumana Pampas, Nazca Desert in Ica. The Nazca Lines (Líneas de Nazca) are ancient geoglyphs composed of several hundred figures that range from simple designs such as lines to complex zoomorphic, hylomorphic, and geometric figures that appear traced on the earth's surface.