TOURIST INFORMATION
HUANCAVELICA |
| GENERAL DATA |
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Location:
The department of Huancavelica is situated in the central
highlands of the Peruvian Andes.
Area:
22 131 Km2
Capital:
Huancavelica
Altitude:
3 680 m.a.s.l.
Average
annual temperature: 10º C (20º C maximum
and 3,4º C minimum). Rainy season runs from December
through March. |
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| ACCESS ROUTES |
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Several roads gain access to this city:
Lima-Huancavelica (via Pisco 499 km) approximately 11
h by car.
Lima-Huancavelica (via Huancayo 457 km) approximately
12 h by car.
Ica-Huancavelica (346 km) approximately 12 h by car.
Ayacucho-Huancavelica (via Rumichaca 244,9 km) |
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| HISTORICAL OVERLOOK |
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This charming colonial town was founded
in 1 571 by Mine Mayor Francisco de Angulo, prompted by
the discovery of the Santa Barbara mercury mine in 1 563,
which boosted the development of Peruvian silver deposits.
Huancavelica was initially a settlement for miners, muleteers,
traders and a large part of the native population who
were forced to work in the mine.
This peasant and mining town continues to develop, using
its own resources. |
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| ATTRACTIONS IN THE CITY OF HUANCAVELICA |
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Plaza de Armas
– Main Square
Previously known as Villa Rica Oropesa, the main square
around which the town of Huancavelica was built is surrounded
by Institutions like the Prefecture, the Town Hall, the
Prison and others, all of which still preserve their colonial
architectural style.
Catedral
Church of San Antonio
Plaza de Armas
Visits: Monday to Saturday 7:00-8:30 and 17:30-19:30,
Sunday 5:30-11:30 and 17:30.
With a baroque style façade, this church was built
of red stone brought from the Puka Rumi area. It contains
a Huancavelica mural from the seventeenth century, a carved
wooden altar covered in gold leaf, silver plate and Cusco
and Huamanca school canvasses.
Daniel
Hernández Regional Museum
Jr. Arica s/n - San Juan de Dios Square
Phone: (064) 75-3420.
Visits: Monday to Friday 09:00-13:00 and 16:00-18:00.
This museum houses Tertiary and Quaternary fossils and
petrified mollusks and other marine species. It also contains
relics of the pre-Inca, colonial and independence periods,
as well as paintings by famous Peruvian artists, including
Daniel Hernandez, Fernando de Szyslo, Milner Cajahuaringa
and others.
San Juan
de Dios Church
San Juan de Dios Square
Visits are not allowed during Holy Week.
Built in the seventeenth century in a neoclassic style,
it contains a large variety of paintings pertaining to
the Huamanca school.
San
Francisco Church
Bolognesi Square
Open to the public only on January 6th, for Epiphany.
Built in 1 774 thanks to benefactress María Rito
Zubizarreta. Its altars are covered in gold and silver
leaf. Its catacombs contain remains of human bones. It
is said that all seven churches in Huancavelica were connected
with each other by underground tunnels, so that evangelizers
could plan their escape from the natives.
San
Sebastián Church
Bolognesi square
Visits: Monday to Friday 16:00-17:00.
With a seventeenth century neoclassic façade and
a gold leaf ceiling in the right nave, it is the only
example of this type of work in Peru. Placed on a small
altar is the image of the “Señor del Prendimiento”
or Lord of Apprehension, worshipped by thousands during
Holy Week.
Tambo de
Mora Lodge
Jr. Tambo de Mora 202.
Visits: by appointment.
A colonial lodge that provided accommodation to muleteers
who traveled through Huancavelica. The colonial style
of the façade is well preserved.
La
Ascensión Colonial Bridge
Jr. Tambo de Mora.
Once the church was built in the La Ascensión district,
it was necessary to build a bridge to secure the muleteer
and wool mill network. The bridge has preserved its architecture
for over four centuries, reflecting its origin, its evolutionary
process and its setting.
La
Ascensión Church
Ascensión Square, Ascensión district
Visits: Friday 9:00-17:00.
A palatial religious monument that looks like a crystalized
extension of the rocks themselves, blending a Moorísh
architecture with the native spirit.
Thermal
Bath in the San Cristóbal District
Av. 28 de Abril s/n, San Cristóbal district
Phone: (064) 75-3222.
Visits: Monday to Friday 6:00-17:00.
The medicinal properties of this pool help to treat skin
ailments. This area is also a recreational center, with
an Olympic pool, private wells, billiard rooms and a bar.
San Cristóbal Church
San Cristóbal. Square
Visits: Monday to Friday 8:00-9:00, Saturday for Mass.
Its murals pertain to late XVIII century style Huancavelica
paintings. The Spanish and native blend is worth noting.
Cuzco School paintings can also be found in this church.
Puente de Piedra (Stone
Bridge)
Situated at the foothill of Mount Potocchi at about 1
km from Huancavelica, or a five minute drive. This 3 m
long and 1 m wide arched bridge made of stone and lime,
connects the San Cristobal district with the Cooripaccha
area.
Santa Ana Church
Ramón Castilla Square
Visits: during Mass hours.
This was the first church built at the end of the sixteenth
century. In the right cornice where the high alter is
located, there are El Grego style paintings and a Cusco
School work of art.
Santo
Domingo Church
Jr. Carabaya s/n, Santo Domingo Square
Visits: Monday to Friday 7:00-8:00.
Built in the sixteenth century, 30 years after the town
of Huancavelica was founded. The Virgen del Rosario and
Santo Domingo are images of fine art worshiped in this
temple, brought from Rome. According to legend, this temple
was connected to the San Francisco church. |
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| OUTSKIRTS OF THE CITY |
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Huaytará
Located 315 km south of Lima along the South Pan-American
Highway as far as the town of Pisco, then along the Los
Libertadores highway. Besides the natural beauty of this
area, it has over fifty cultural and ethnographic manifestations.
Prominent among these are the Inca Temple, cold and hot
water baths, and the Sumacc Pata terraces.
Incahuasi
Ruins
Further along the Los Libertadores highway about 20 km
from Huaytará, these ruins are grouped in five
clusters; two buildings with high adobe walls are said
to have been part of the Inca palace.
Santa
Bárbara Deadly Mine
Situated 4 km South of Huancavelica, about a 1 ½
h walk. For more than two centuries, the mining system
caused a heavy death toll among the natives in this area.
(It is said that native mothers went as far as breaking
their sons’ bones to prevent them from being worked
to death in the Deadly Mine). There are traces of a town
with a colonial structure in this area. The coat of arms
of the Spanish Crown is carved in stone at the main entrance
to the mine.
El Arco
El Triunfo
Located 1 km southeast of the town (about 30 minutes on
foot) in an area called Santa Inés Pata, this stone
arch is a historical monument, considered to be the main
entrance to the town.
Inkañan
Uchkus Archaeological Complex
Situated 24 km From Huancavelica, approximately 45 minutes
by car, this religious and astronomical complex includes
a farming complex, an astronomical platform with water
mirrors to measure the classic movements of the sun and
moon, and miniature terraces to improve the crops.
Santa Rosa Farmhouse
Located east of the town, some 4,5 km by road along the
Huancavelica-Huancayo highway, a 10 minute drive. It is
a large old house with a chapel, containing traces of
mural paintings on the side walls and a distillery.
Puya de Raimondi
Situated 14 km west of the town via the Huancavelica-Pisco
highway, is a forest with about 1 100 seedlings of Puya,
a species with the greatest inflorescence in the world,
growing as tall as 12 m and covering about 2 km2. |
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| HANDICRAFTS |
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| Pottery, leatherwork and knitted goods. |
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| GASTRONOMY |
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Typical dishes:
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Ropa vieja (meat stew with pulses,
potatoes, rice and cabbage). |
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Caldo de mondongo ( tripe soup with corn, spearmint
and giblets). |
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Pachamanca (various types of meat, potatoes and
corn covered with aromatic herbs and cooked underground
between hot stones, in pre-Hispanic style). |
Typical desert: Ayrampo pudding. |
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| FESTIVITIES |
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Festival of the
Lost Child (January)
The purpose of this religious festival is to find baby
Jesus, who is in the temple having a discussion with lawyers,
in order to adore Him and sing and dance for Him in thanksgiving.
The festival lasts four never-ending days, with typical
dances and competitions along the town’s main streets.
Easter (March / April)
Easter or Holy Week is a representation of the events
in which Christ played a main role 2 000 years ago. The
faithful in Huancavelica express their Christian devotion
during night-time processions and liturgical ceremonies
on Palm Sunday.
Festival
of the Crosses (June)
The first festival brought by the Spaniards was the feast
of Pentecost or the Arrival of the Holy Spirit, a week-long
celebration in every neighborhood, under the symbol of
Crosses. The celebrations include taking down the crosses
and holding bullfights in every district, accompanied
by Wagra Pukis, the songs of Jarawis and the famous pututeros. |
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| SERVICES |
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Railroad Transport
Huancavelica – Huancayo Route
Av. Augusto B. Leguía s/n, Huancavelica District
Phone: (064) 75-2898
Ordinary train: 5 h.
Departures: Monday to Saturday 6:30 y 14:30, Sunday
6:30
Railcar: 3 h.
Departures: Friday 17:30 and Monday 6:20.
Land Transport
There are no ground transport terminals, however most
transport companies line up around the Main Square.
Health Centers
Departmental Hospital.
Av. Andrés Avelino Cáceres s/n .
Phone: (064) 75-2990.
24 hour service.
Police Stations
Comisaría de Huancavelica.
Plaza Santa Ana s/n, Barrio de Santa Ana, Huancavelica.
Phone: (064) 75-3041
24 hour service.
Artisan Markets
Central Market.
Jr. Victor Garma s/n.
Post Office
Manchego Muñoz 759, Huancavelica.
Phone: (064) 75-2750.
Open: Monday to Saturday 8:00-20:00. |
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