Other sights in Lima
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A
Monasterio de San Francisco
This bright yellow Franciscan monastery and church is most famous for its bone-lined catacombs (containing an estimated 70,000 burials) and its remarkable library, where you can take in the sight of 25,000 antique texts, some of them predating the conquest. But this baroque structure has many other things worth seeing: the most spectacular is a geometric Moorish-style cupola, over the main staircase, which was carved in 1625 (restored 1969) out of Nicaraguan cedar. In addition, the refectory contains 13 paintings, of the biblical patriarch Jacob and his 12 sons, attributed to the studio of Spanish master Francisco de Zurbarán.
reviewed
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Museo Larco
An 18th-century viceroy’s mansion houses this museum, which has one of the largest, best-presented displays of ceramics in Lima. Founded by Rafael Larco Hoyle in 1926, a dedicated collector and cataloguer of all things pre-Columbian, the collection is said to include, among other things, more than 50,000 pots (with thousands of extras housed in glass storerooms, which visitors can also see). The museum showcases ceramic works from the Cupisnique, Chimú, Chancay, Nazca and Inca cultures, but the highlight is the sublime Moche portrait vessels, presented in simple, dramatically lit cases. Equally astonishing: a Wari weaving in one of the rear galleries that contains 398 t…
reviewed
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Puruchuco
The site of Puruchuco hit the news in 2002 when about 2000 well-preserved mummy bundles were unearthed from the enormous Inca cemetery. It’s one of the biggest finds of its kind, and the multitude of grave goods included a number of well preserved quipu (knotted ropes that the Inca used as a system of record-keeping). The site has a highly reconstructed chief’s house, with one room identified as a guinea-pig ranch. Situated amid the shantytown of Túpac Amaru, Puruchuco is 13km from Central Lima. (It is best to take a taxi.) A signpost on the highway marks the turn-off, and from here it is several hundred meters along a road to the right.
reviewed
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Ichimay Wari
At the southern edge of Lurín, a working-class enclave that lies 50km south of Central Lima on the Panamericana, are the studios belonging to the crafts collective Ichimay Wari. The group consists of more than a dozen artisans from Ayacucho who produce traditional retablos, pottery, Andean-style Christmas decorations and the colorful clay trees known as arbolitos de la vida (trees of life). The central shop is small, but the pieces are well crafted and the prices are a bargain. The best bet, however, is to make an appointment 24 hours in advance to tour individual studios and meet the artisans.
reviewed
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B
Panteón de Los Próceres
Located inside a little-visited 18th-century Jesuit church, this monument pays tribute to a bevy of Peruvian battle heroes, from Túpac Amaru II, the 18th-century Quechua leader who led an indigenous uprising, to José de San Martín, who led the country to independence in the 1820s. The mosaic-lined crypt holds the remains of Ramón Castilla, the four-time Peruvian president who saw the country through a good piece of the 19th century. The building retains an impressive baroque altar, carved out of Ecuadorean mahogany, which dates to the 1500s.
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Cajamarquilla
A pre-Columbian site, Cajamarquilla is a crumbling adobe city that was built up by the Wari culture (AD 700–1100) on the site of a settlement originally developed by the Lima culture. A road to the left from Lima at about Km 10 (18km from Central Lima) goes to the Cajamarquilla zinc refinery, almost 5km from the highway. The ruins are located about halfway along the refinery road; you take a turn to the right along a short road. There are signs, but ask the locals for the zona arqueológica if you have trouble finding them.
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C
Huaca Pucllana
Located near the Óvalo Gutiérrez, this huaca is a restored adobe ceremonial center from the Lima culture that dates back to AD 400. Though vigorous excavations continue, the site is accessible by regular guided tours in Spanish (for a tip). In addition to a tiny on-site museum, there’s a celebrated restaurant that offers incredible views of the illuminated ruins at night.
reviewed
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D
Museo Andrés del Castillo
Housed in a pristine 19th-century mansion with Spanish-tile floors, this worthwhile new private museum showcases a vast collection of minerals, as well as breathtakingly displayed Nazca textiles and Chancay pottery, including some remarkable representations of Peruvian hairless dogs.
reviewed
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E
Casa de Pilatos
The lovely red Casa de Pilatos is home to offices for the Tribunal Constitucional (Supreme Court). Access is a challenge: visitors are only allowed into the courtyard provided there aren’t official meetings going on. Enter through the side door on Azángaro.
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F
Galería Lucía de la Puente
A magnificent two-story casona is home to Lima’s most prestigious contemporary art gallery. Look for works by cutting-edge painters such as Fernando Gutiérrez, whose bold canvases often skewer Peruvian culture.
reviewed
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G
Casa-Capilla de San Martín de Porres
The Casa-Capilla de San Martín de Porres commemorates the birthplace of San Martín (now a center of religious study). Visitors are welcome to view the bright interior patios and the diminutive chapel.
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