Church of La Merced, Cusco, 1877 George Squier

The Basilica of La Merced, also known as Convent of La Merced, is a

minor basilica In the Catholic Church, a basilica is a designation given by the Pope to a church building. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectural sense (a rectangular ...

located in the city of

Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

. It is located 100 meters southwest of the

Plaza de Armas The ''Plaza de Armas'' (literally Weapons Square, but better translated as Parade Square or parade ground) is the name for Latin American main squares. In the central region of Mexico this space is known as El Zócalo and in Central America as ...

(city's main square) in front of the Plazoleta Espinar. It belongs to the

Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy The Royal, Celestial and Military Order of Our Lady of Mercy and the Redemption of the Captives ( la, Ordo Beatae Mariae de Mercede Redemptionis Captivorum, abbreviated O. de M.), also known as the Mercedarians, is a Catholic mendicant order es ...

and has, annexes, both the convent and the premises of La Merced College. The church has a three-nave basilica plan covered with brick vaults and

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

on the crossing, with

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

altars on its lateral naves and Neoclassical style on the main altar. It also has a tower with Baroque bell tower topped with a semicircular dome. Highlights its portal-side reredos and the

Renaissance 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 ideas ...

portal of the ''muro de pies'', the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

stalls, its colonial paintings and polychrome wood carvings. Inside rest the remains of Diego de Almagro,

Diego de Almagro II Diego de Almagro II (1520 – September 16, 1542), called ''El Mozo'' (the lad), was the son of Spanish conquistador Diego de Almagro and Ana Martínez, a native Panamanian Indian woman. Peru In 1531 El Mozo accompanied his father on the e ...

and Gonzalo Pizarro. Since 1972 the property is part of the monumental area of Cusco declared as a Historic Monument of Peru. Also being part of the historic center of the city of Cusco, it is part of the area declared a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

in 1983.

History

Main cloister of the Basilica of La Merced, Cusco, Peru, 1920

The Basilica of La Merced was founded by Friar Sebastián de Trujillo Castañeda between 1535 and 1536. By 1538, Francisco Pizarro donated to the

Mercedarians The Royal, Celestial and Military Order of Our Lady of Mercy and the Redemption of the Captives ( la, Ordo Beatae Mariae de Mercede Redemptionis Captivorum, abbreviated O. de M.), also known as the Mercedarians, is a Catholic mendicant order es ...

the estate called Limpipata adjacent to the Kusipata square where the construction of the first Mercedarian church in the city began. The current church replaced the first church destroyed by the earthquake of 1650. The current church had to be built between 1651 and 1670 while the tower had to be built between 1692 and 1696 as well as the second cloister of the convent.

Description

Porstcard of 1910 of Basilica of La Merced (Cusco, Peru)

Inside there is a spectacular series of murals depicting the life of the Merced Order's founder,

Peter Nolasco Peter Nolasco (1189 – 6 May 1256), ''Pere Nolasc'' in Catalan, ''Pierre Nolasque'' in French and ''Pedro Nolasco'' in Spanish, is a Catholic saint, born at Mas-des-Saintes-Puelles, Languedoc, today's France, although some historians claim he ...

Mercedarian monstrance

The

monstrance A monstrance, also known as an ostensorium (or an ostensory), is a vessel used in Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, High Church Lutheran and Anglican churches for the display on an altar of some object of piety, such as the consecrated Eucharistic Sa ...

is exhibited inside one of the main cloister environments of the Basilica of La Merced. It is a work of goldsmith made with gold and precious stones, with a total weight of 22 kilos of weight and 130 centimeters in height. It has 230 grams of gold and silver, 1538 diamonds, 628 pearls, 312 amethysts, 3 emeralds, 1 topaz and dozens of rubies and other gems; the monstrance has carved among them some angels in the upper part, the virgin in the center, bottom the

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are sometimes asso ...

and a sheep near the base of the monstrance.

Sculpture of St. Peter Nolasco

The sculpture of

St. Peter Nolasco Peter Nolasco (1189 – 6 May 1256), ''Pere Nolasc'' in Catalan, ''Pierre Nolasque'' in French and ''Pedro Nolasco'' in Spanish, is a Catholic saint, born at Mas-des-Saintes-Puelles, Languedoc, today's France, although some historians claim he ...

that the church has is attributed to the Cusco-born Inca sculptor, Melchor Guamán Maita.

Museum

A small museum of religious art is found in the sacristy.

Christ of the Earthquakes

In the customary departure of

Holy Monday Holy Monday or Great and Holy Monday (also Holy and Great Monday) (Greek: ''Μεγάλη Δευτέρα'', ''Megale Deutera'') is a day of the Holy Week, which is the week before Easter. According to the gospels, on this day Jesus Christ cursed ...

, the Christ of the Earthquakes, patron of the city of Cusco, arrives at the Basilica of La Merced to stay for an hour, to perform mass and receiving it with Christian songs. The Christ of the Earthquakes gets to change his habit from the Monastery of San José y Santa Teresa.

References

External links

The Basilica of La Merced website
360° views and information {{coord, -13.51825, -71.97945, format=dms, type:landmark_region:PE, display=title Roman Catholic churches in Cusco 1536 establishments in the Viceroyalty of Peru Roman Catholic churches completed in 1696 Basilica churches in Peru Baroque church buildings in Peru Renaissance architecture in Peru Burials in Peru Museums in Cusco 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Peru Cultural heritage of Peru