Santuario de Las Lajas

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Coordinates: 0 ° 48 ′ 19.2 ″  N , 77 ° 35 ′ 9.6 ″  W.

Santuario de las Lajas seen from the south
Votive tablets

The Santuario de Nuestra Señora de las Lajas ( German  pilgrimage church of Our Lady of Las Lajas ) is a Catholic minor basilica , which was built in honor of Nuestra Señora de las Lajas ( Maria ). It is located in the canyon of the Río Guáitara in Ipiales , in southern Colombia . It has been a popular destination since the 18th century.

Geographical location

The sanctuary is located in the gorge of the Río Guáitara, in the parish ( corregimiento ) of Las Lajas in the municipality of Ipiales . It belongs to the Departamento de Nariño and is 7 km from the administrative center and 10 km from the border with Ecuador .

architecture

The current building was built at the beginning of the 20th century. It replaced an 18th century chapel. The church was built from gray and white stone in a neo-Gothic style. It has three ships built on a two-arched bridge over the river. The bridge also connects the forecourt of the church with the opposite side of the valley. The height of the church, from the foundation to the tower, is 100 m. The bridge has a height of 50 m, a width of 17 m and a length of 20 m.

The main building measures 27.50 m in length and 15 m in width. Inside, the three naves are roofed with cross vaults. The interior is dominated by a mosaic of glass fiber . During the day, the light plays with the glass pictures by German artist Walter Wolf Wasserhoven . The closing wall of the apses is the natural rock wall of the canyon and in the middle one can see the image of the Virgen del Rosario , which was painted on a slate by an unknown painter . The basement of the church, or correctly called the substructure of the bridge, i.e. the two pillars from the center, are designed as a crypt in the Romanesque style. The three-aisled barrel vault made of ashlar is dedicated to the Sagrado Corazón de Jesús .

The facade is dominated by three turrets, which are decorated with finials , acanthios , windows, rose windows , buttresses , buttresses and pinnacles . The walls that flank the access to the sanctuary are stepped in a characteristic way and adapted to the terrain. They are full of votive offerings that remind of fulfilled prayers. These include orthopedic aids that are reminiscent of healing miracles.

history

Sculpture of the indigenous mother María Mueses with her daughter Rosa

The Franciscan brother Juan de Santa Gertrudis describes the sanctuary under the title “Maravillas de la naturaleza” in his travel chronicle of the years 1756–1762 to the south of the viceroyalty of New Granada (Volume 4, Book III). This is probably the earliest mention.

Main altar with the image of Nuestra Señora de las Lajas
Neighboring building

Later handed Monseñor Justino Mejia y Mejia , who Capellán the sanctuary from 1944 to 1977 and historians who tested story about the picture discovery of the Virgen del Rosario in 1754. The locals María Mueses (Mueces) was with her little daughter Rosa on the On the way from Ipiales to her hometown Potosí. When they were caught by a storm, they sought shelter in a hollow in the path that opened up between the huge slabs of slate that are characteristic of this section of the canyon. To the great surprise of the mother, the daughter, who until then had been considered deaf and dumb, called the mother: "Mamita, the woman (Mestiza) is calling me ...". She pointed to the apparition, which at that moment was eerily illuminated by lightning. After the authorities and the locals had checked the truthfulness of the information and it was confirmed by the church authorities on September 15, 1754, the place became a place of pilgrimage for the whole region, including the north of Ecuador, and the construction of the sanctuary began. The Santuario developed into its current form in five clearly separated construction phases.

Building history

Santuario de las Lajas, in the third construction phase, after 1853

The first construction phase consisted of a hut construction made of wood and straw that lasted for 40 years. In the second phase of construction, a brick and lime chapel was built that ended in a dome.

In the third construction phase, the building was oriented in a south-easterly direction. The Ecuadorian architect Mariano Aulestia designed the building, which for more than a century aroused admiration for its daring construction. The writer and later President of Colombia, Santiago Pérez Manosalva, wrote in his chronicle " Apuntes de un viaje por el sur de la Nueva Granada, en 1853 ":

“Coming from the south and descending over a serpentine of rock, the traveler suddenly encounters, in the midst of rocks and, so to speak, in their hearts, a chapel, the exterior of which rises boldly and gracefully from the gorge. This part consists of brick walls; the inside is made entirely of the same stone, interrupted by slate, and on one of them one sees the image of the Virgin, drawn in oil paint, which was awakened by nature and perfected by man, in the innermost part of pain. The waters tumble down from a height of forty feet, the walls stand out sharp and rocky; the forest is pushing itself up everywhere, and all outlines present themselves with primeval majesty. "

The fourth construction phase created a forecourt and the two-arched bridge.

The fifth construction phase brought the building into its current state. He began with the foundation stone blessing on January 1, 1916; the work was carried out under the responsibility of the Ecuadorian engineer J. Gualberto Pérez and Lucindo Espinosa and was completed in August 1949. It has been calculated that 1,850,000 Colombian pesos (about $ 1,000,000 dollars) were spent. The money was raised through donations and vows, mainly from Colombia and Ecuador.

View from below.

Timeline

  • In 1951 the Coronatio Canonica of the Nuestra Señora de las Lajas was carried out by the Vatican
  • 1954 raised Pope Pius XII. the sanctuary to the Basilica minor .
  • In 1984 it was declared a Monumento parte del patrimonio cultural by the Resolución 007 of December 28, 1984 by the Colombian government.
  • In 2006 the church was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural de Carácter Nacional by Resolución 1592 of October 2006 .
  • In 2007 she was ranked second among the Seven Wonders of Colombia . Only the Catedral de Sal in Zipaquirá achieved higher ratings . The rating was obtained through a vote by the Colombian magazine " El Tiempo ".

Religious Aspects

Santuario de las Lajas from the north

The parish belongs to the Diócesis de Ipiales . The Santuario is under the administration of the Fraternity of the Franciscanas de María Inmaculada . She is looked after by the Capellán and associate priests in the Parish Nuestra Señora del Rosario de las Lajas . Services are performed according to the usual Catholic rite. The pilgrimage is year-round, but swells at three times of the year: in September, at the patronage feasts on September 15 and 16, on Jueves Santo , when pilgrims mainly from Pasto or Túquerres and the surrounding villages and from Ecuador walk one Go on a pilgrimage of at least 12 hours. There is also a special pilgrimage in December and the first days of the New Year.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. a b Colcultura. Catálogo Monumentos Nacionales de Colombia. Siglo XX, Santuario Nacional de las Lajas, Bogotá, Colcultura, p. 69, 1995.
  2. ^ Fray Juan de Santa Gertrudis. "Maravillas de la naturaleza", book III, chap. 3. Publicación digital en la página web de la Biblioteca Luis Ángel Arango del Banco de la República. Contiene: "Lo que me pasó en Taminango hasta que volví a Pasto del viaje de la Virgen de Las Lajas" .
  3. "Mamita, la mestiza me llama ..."
  4. Mejía y Mejía, JC Pbro. "Tradiciones y documentos. Apuntes relativos a la historia de Nuestra Señora de las Lajas", Editorial Pax, cuarta edición, Bogotá, 1950.
  5. “El primero de enero de 1795 se comenzó a trabajar la piedra de cantería para la capilla de Nuestra Señora de las Lajas y en ese día se gastaron veinticinco pesos en socorrer los indios canteros que vinieron de la villa (Ibarra). Seguramente, a principios de 1796, se dio de lleno a la mencionada construcción y, de allí en adelante, siguió el curso de la obra con generosidad, diligencia y constancia, poniendo al servicio de ella los escasos ingresos que percibía la parroquia, el trabajoquia de las propias manos de los habitantes y the amplia cooperación de varios arquitectos ecuatorianos. Después de siete años de constantes esfuerzos, se construyó la capilla que contaba con 7 m. de largo por 6 m. de ancho “Resolución 1592 de 2006 del Ministerio de Cultura de Colombia
  6. ^ "Notes from a trip to the south of New Granada in 1853": "Museo de cuadros de costumbres" II- Varios autores, Edición original: Bogotá, F. Mantilla, 1866- Publicación digital en la página web de la Biblioteca Luis Ángel Arango del Banco de la República. [1] .
  7. "Adelantando hacia el sur y descendiendo como por una espiral de piedra, de repente halla el viajero, en medio de peñascos y como labrada en el corazón de ellos, una capilla, cuya parte externa se asoma atrevida y graciosamente sobre el precipicio parte es de mampostería; el interior es todo formado por la roca misma, cortada en lajas, y en una de éstas se ve dibujada al óleo la imagen de la Virgen, a quien ha levantado la naturaleza y el hombre completado este altar en las entrañas de la peña. Las aguas corren cuarenta pies abajo; las murallas se destacan agrias y rocallosas; el bosque se tupe alrededor, y todos los contornos se presentan con silvestre majestad "
  8. ^ Dolar Histórico en Colombia del Año 1949

Web links

Commons : Santuario de Las Lajas  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files