To fill time until the afternoon tour of Cuzco's Inca and colonial sites we then jumped in a taxi and headed up into the hills to visit the statue of Christo Blanco (White Christ), which is a smaller version of the world famous statue of Corcovado (Christ The Redeemer), situated in Rio de Janerio in Brazil. From this high vantage point on the outskirts of the city it is possible to obtain a panoramic view of the many densely packed suburbs that have arisen in the hills surrounding the city, with many of the buildings perched precariously on very steep terrain, and very obviously poorly constructed. This made me wonder if they wouldn't simply tumble down on top of each other like dominoes during the next major earthquake, resulting in unimaginable devastation.
We then rode the taxi back to Plaza San Blas on the outskirts of the city, which is the centre of the crafts district. The narrow cobbled streets that connect this plaza with the main plaza are lined with textile, painting, jewellery and musical instrument workshops, making and selling an amazing variety of high quality indigenous artwork. After an hour viewing, haggling and buying yet more souvenirs, we returned to the Plaza de Armas for a spot of lunch, finding a restaurant with a balcony overlooking the plaza, and affording great views of the cathedral. We then crossed to the entrance of the cathedral to meet our guide Carlos at 13:40hrs for the start of the afternoon tour.
WOW! WOW! WOW! While the outside of La Catedral appears quite drab, the interior houses a colossal treasure trove of gold and silver religious artifacts devoted to the Virgin Mary and the unique fusion of Catholicism and Inca pagan rituals practiced in this part of the world. It is also one of the worlds greatest repositories of colonial art. As was (sadly) the custom of the day, it was built over the site of the main temple of worship for the vanquished, using building blocks pilfered from the exquisite walls of the nearby Inca site of Sacsaywaman (Sexy Woman). Construction took over 2 centuries in three distinct phases, and was plagued by poor architectural design that ignored the sophisticated techniques developed by the Incas to withstand earthquakes. Building of the main central church started in 1559 and was joined Iglesia del Triunfo to the right and Iglesia de Jesus Maria to the left. El Triunfo houses a vault containing the remains of the famous Inca chronicler Garcilaso de la Vega.
Most of the huge paintings on display originate from the famous Escuela Cuzqueña (Cuzco School), noted for its blend of classical European devotional painting style with the pastel hues and iconography of indigenous Andean artists. The oldest surviving painting depicts Cuzco during the massive earthquake of 1650, with inhabitants seen parading around the plaza with a crucifix, praying for the earthquake to stop. The crucifix, known as El Señor de los Temblores (Lord of the Earthquakes) is on display in an alcove to the right El Triunfo. The original wooden alter is at the very back of the cathedral, behind the present day solid silver one. Opposite both is the magnificent intricately carved cedar choir stalls, dating from the 17th century. The glitzy gold and silver artifacts are displayed in numerous side chapels, behind huge wooden gates that originate back to the construction of the cathedral, and are in complete contrast with the austere stonework.
Amazed, we then trotted a short distance to visit Qorikancha, at one time the richest temple in the Inca empire, and arguably the world. Ashamedly, the Spanish conquistadores saw fit to pull down this "work of the devil", melt down the vast collection of gold offerings to their Inca gods into mere coins and desecrate the site by using the foundations for the colonial church and convent of Santo Domingo. Sadly, all that remains today is the masterful megalithic stonework. In Inca times, Qorikancha was literally covered with gold. The temple walls were lined with some 700 solid gold sheets, each weighing about 2 kg. There were life sized gold and silver replicas of corn cobs and solid gold alters, llamas and even babies; all looted and melted down. Qorikancha was also a highly sophisticated celestial observatory; a remarkable feat for a civilisation that had yet to discover writing, and they were the only culture in the world to define constellations of darkness as well as stars. What remains are curved 6 m high walls, comprising interlocking blocks of stone precisely fitted to ensure their survival, completely intact, through every earthquake since their construction over 550 years ago - a feat unmatched by ANY of the colonial buildings. The octagonal fountain at the centre of the site was originally covered with 55 kg of gold. Inca chambers on all sides of the courtyard were temples to the moon and stars, covered in sheets of silver, and to thunder and the rainbow.
I could have stayed here all day, but we were whisked off by bus to visit Sacsaywaman situated in the hills surrounding Cuzco, and close to Cristo Blanco. I personally did not think it possible to be more impressed than the visits to La Catedral and Qorikancha, but the immensity of the Inca ruins at Sacsaywaman overwhelms the senses; especially the realization that what remains of this religious and military Inca complex is only about 20% of the original structure. As everywhere else in the Inca empire the demise and vandalism of this grand complex was the result of Spaniard wanton destruction. Much of what was pulled down was used to build a new colonial city. What remains are the largest and most impressive megalithic walls that formed the main battlements which were simply too big for any other purpose - one of the fitted stones weighs an incredible 300 tons. It was here that the Spaniards defeated the rebellion by the last Inca, Manco, with just 50 cavalry, slaying thousands of Quecha natives that attracted swarms of Andean condors in the days that followed. In total, there are 22 three-tiered zigzag fortifications that symbolised the teeth of the puma-shaped outline of Cuzco city envisaged by the 9th Inca, Patchacutec, with Sacsaywaman positioned as the head. On a hill opposite the zigzag ramparts are the foundations of huge towers, the largest being 22 m in diameter. These were used to store water, with the huge stones fitted so precisely that no mortar was required to prevent leaks.
While wandering this astonishing archeological site, the weather deteriorated quickly, with torrential rain, accompanied by severe thunder and lightening, chasing us back into the bus. We then proceeded to visit 2 other Inca sites in the downpour, but while interesting, they paled in comparison with Qorikancha and Sacsaywaman. On the journey back to Plaza de Armas we stopped off at a textile outlet selling exquisite handmade garments from Alpaca and Vacuña wool. At last, I was able to buy Astrid a 50th birthday present!
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