Matucana is a town in Central

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, capital of the Matucana District located in the Huarochirí Province, in the

Department of Lima The Department of Lima (), known as the Department of the Capital () until 1823, is a department and region located in the central coast of Peru; the seat of the regional government is Huacho. Lima Province, which contains the city of Lima, ...

. It's located to the east of Lima at 2,378 m (7,802 ft) above sea level, along the Central Highway () at km 74.

History

Matucana was founded in 1647 by Miguel de Castro y García, a descendant of one of Francisco Pizarro's Conquistadores. He discovered gold in the hills outside of Matucana at a site that was once a holy shrine for the Incas. Using Inca slaves to operate the mine, he became very wealthy and eventually returned to live in Lima, Peru. The gold mine was unfortunately buried in a huge avalanche triggered by the devastating Santa Ursula earthquake of October 21, 1756, which also caused great damage to the City of

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

Climate

Matucana has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''BSk'') with mild temperatures. Matucana experiences relatively stable temperatures throughout the year, with minor variations between months. The dry season experiences larger

diurnal air temperature variation In meteorology, diurnal temperature variation is the variation between a high air temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day. Temperature lag Temperature lag, also known as thermal inertia, is an important factor in diurna ...

, with warmer days and cooler nights, compared to the wet season. The yearly average high temperature is 21.4°C (70.5°F), while the yearly average low temperature is 9.8°C (49.6°F). The total annual precipitation is 311.6 millimeters (12.27 inches). Matucana receives the majority of its precipitation during the

wet season The wet season (sometimes called the rainy season or monsoon season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Generally, the season lasts at least one month. The term ''green season'' is also sometimes used a ...

, which typically spans from January to March. The months from May to September experience almost no rainfall.

Society and culture

The City of Matucana is a popular destination for eco-tourists, as it has beautiful water falls in the deep valleys outside of the town and plentiful hiking trails. It is also the starting point for the increasingly popular "De Las Montanas y Mar" bicycle race held every year between Matucana and Lima. The bicycle race starts at the Chez Victor Restaurant in Matucana and finishes at the La Rosa Nautica Restaurant in Lima. One of Don Miguel's descendants runs the Chez Victor restaurant in Matucana, while the La Rosa Nautica Restaurant is owned by the descendants of the Viceroy who granted the lands around Matucana to Don Miguel de Castro y Garcia.

References

Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática The Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática (INEI) ("National Institute of Statistics and Informatics") is a semi-autonomous Peruvian government agency which coordinates, compiles, and evaluates statistical information for the country. ...

br>Resultados censales
{{Coord, 11, 50, 41, S, 76, 23, 10, W, region:PE_type:city, display=title Populated places in the Department of Lima 1647 establishments in the Spanish Empire Populated places established in 1647