La Paz Cathedral
The Cathedral of La Paz or Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace ( Spanish Catedral basílica de Nuestra Señora de La Paz ) is a Roman Catholic church in the Bolivian seat of government La Paz . The cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of La Paz and also has the title of a minor basilica . It is consecrated to the Virgin Mary under the patronage of Our Lady of Peace .
location
The cathedral is located in Plaza Murillo, along with the bishop's residence, the government palace and the congress . The terrain on the edge of the hill drops 12 meters from the entrance to the cathedral in Murillo square to the end of the choir.
history
Construction of the previous cathedral began in 1622 and was completed after 70 years. At the beginning of the 19th century, cracks in the masonry grew so strong that in 1831 the building had to be closed and completely demolished.
The construction of today's cathedral began on March 24, 1835 under the president Andrés de Santa Cruz , who was also buried in a chapel of the cathedral. In addition, some special taxes were levied in the Department of 30,000 pesos annually. The cathedral was inaugurated in 1925 as part of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Bolivia. The interior decoration continued until 1932. In 1948 Pope Pius XII gave the church . awarded the title of a minor basilica . The side facade towers with their domes were not completed until 1989, the occasion was the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1988. Pope Francis visited the church in 2015.
architecture
The neoclassical cathedral designed by the architect Manual Sanahuja is a five-aisled church with a high crossing dome , thick columns, solid walls and high ceilings.
The cathedral facade features a large green metal door with 2 smaller doors on either side. The central door is surrounded by three Corinthian columns reminiscent of Greco-Roman style.
The interior of the cathedral is rather simple. The main altar made of Italian marble is relatively inconspicuous. Rather, the eye-catcher is the stained glass window behind it, which depicts a gathering of Bolivian politicians who are being blessed by a group of angels from above.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Catedral Basílica de Nuestra Señora de La Paz on gcatholic.org
- ↑ La Paz Metropolitan Cathedral on lapazlife.com (Engl.)
Coordinates: 16 ° 29 ′ 47.3 ″ S , 68 ° 8 ′ 3 ″ W.