Monasterio de la Recoleta

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  • Address
    La Recoleta 117, NW Centro
  • Phone
    27 0966

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Lonely Planet review

This musty monastery was constructed on the west side of the Río Chili in 1648 by Franciscan friars, though it has since been completely rebuilt. Scholarship was an integral part of the Franciscans' order, and bibliophiles will delight in their huge library, which contains more than 20,000 dusty books and maps; the oldest volume dates back to 1494.

The library itself is only open for 15-minute supervised visits, starting at then every hour thereafter. There is also a museum of Amazonian exhibits collected by the missionaries, and an extensive collection of pre-conquest artifacts and religious art of the escuela cuzqueña (Cuzco school). Guides speak Spanish, English, French and Italian (a small tip is expected).