Laraos Terraces
Laraos, Peru 1440–present
The landscaped terraces, or andenería, of Laraos—which are among the largest of their kind and still in use—are marvels of ancient engineering that made cultivating the steep slopes of the Andes possible. Similarities in design and technology have led scholars to believe that the pre-Inca terraces of Laraos
may have been precursors to those surrounding the great Inca city of Cusco. The terraces have also shaped the cultural identity and traditions of the people of the
region. The Andean concept of the faena—a form of collective labor and sharing of yields—is essential to the functioning of the terrace landscape, which continues to produce Andean tuber and root crops cultivated using
traditional farming methods. In 2006, Peru’s National Institute of Culture declared the Laraos area a National Archaeological Heritage Site.
The current methods of storage, transport, and marketing of produce from the andenería are no longer efficient enough to make the terraces profitable.
As a result, farmers are abandoning the fields for work in the cities. As laborers migrate, knowledge of terrace agriculture leaves with them. In addition to the loss of experiential knowledge, cultural traditions are also disappearing.
Erosion and possible contamination of the water supply by waste from a nearby mine have also compounded the problems facing the future of Laraos’ terraces. It is estimated that the terrace landscape of Laraos will be completely
abandoned and lost within a few decades if measures are not taken to preserve it.
Lima Historic City Center
Lima, Peru 17th–19th centuries
Founded by Francisco Pizarro in 1535 as “the City of Kings,” Lima was laid
out according to the standard Spanish colony grid plan that was superimposed on a crossing point of pre-existing Inca roads. In 1544, Lima became the political and administrative center of the Viceroyalty of Peru, which until the eighteenth century controlled a territory extending from Panama to the
Strait of Magellan. From its foundation until the establishment of free trade at the end of the eighteenth century, Lima’s port of Callao was the point of entry for all trade from Spain, Mexico, and China to South America.
Prospering from this monopoly, a wealthy class emerged, building important houses, palaces, gardens, and churches—some considered the most opulent and ostentatious in the Americas. Among these are the seventeenth-century Prado House and the eighteenthcentury Church of Santa Liberata—both excellent examples of the amalgamation of European design and indigenous styles and
materials—and the late-eighteenth-century Franciscan House of Spiritual Exercises, which represents the last period of viceroyal architecture in Lima. The Quinta Heeren (1890–1930), a historic housing complex, is a unique example of European eclectic architecture with Japanese influences,
built with indigenous materials. Also of note is the city’s neo-Baroque Municipal
Theater (1920), considered the cultural symbol of Lima. In 1991 the historic center of Lima was designated a World Heritage Site.
Although an economic boom during the first half of the twentieth century brought many urban improvements to the city—such as paved streets, markets, and public buildings— it also resulted in a virtual abandonment of Lima’s historic center by wealthy owners, who were eager to move to newly created suburbs and business centers. Former mansions were subdivided by poorer
tenants and the city infrastructure became overloaded. Despite several attempts at rehabilitation by several city mayors, hundreds of monuments and thousands of residences in the historic center are abandoned and threatened by collapse. In light of the dire situation, UNESCO has recently solicited the support of WMF to review the current situation and develop recommendations for better management of the historic and cultural resources of Lima.
Machu Picchu Historic Sanctuary
Urubamba Valley, Peru 15th century
The ancient Inca city of Machu Picchu, the remains of which overlook the Vilcanota River in the south-central Andes, first came to the attention of the outside world in 1911 when Hiram Bingham of Yale University arrived at the site
at the invitation of the Peruvian Government, having located it with the aid of a nineteenth-century map. The fortified mountaintop retreat, which consists of numerous stone structures and agricultural terraces, was built by the fifteenth-century Inca ruler Pachacutec Inca Yupanqui and his descendants. More than two centuries after the fall of the Inca Empire, Machu Picchu’s remote
location provided safe haven for rebel forces fighting Spanish rule in the years leading up to Peruvian independence in 1821.
This architectural masterpiece and its natural environment were inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1983. In the near century since its “discovery,” Machu Picchu has attracted increasing numbers of visitors—initially archaeologists and backpackers. In 1992, a total of 9,000 tourists
visited the site. By 2006, however, that number had topped 4,000 on a single day. Although the site generates some $40 million in revenue annually
for the Peruvian economy, little has been done to address the impacts of tourism on the site or the resulting environmental degradation of the area. A
number of proposals that could pose further damage to the site have been proposed in recent years, among them the construction of a poorly sited tram to ease visitor access, which—along with uncontrolled development and environmental mismanagement in the town of Aguas Calientes at the base of the mountain—earned Machu Picchu a place on WMF’s 2000 Watch List. While plans for the tram are being substantially modified to minimize its impact, a new threat has emerged in the form of a bridge that has just been built across
the Vilcanota River in defiance of a court order and government protests. The 80-meter-long bridge spans the river between Machu Picchu and the town of Santa Teresa, 20 kilometers to the west. While townspeople claim that the bridge will stimulate greater economic exchange between their once-isolated
community and Cusco, preservationists and government officials fear a surge in visitors—with new clientele using this route to avoid the fees charged on the Inca trail and by the privately owned Peru Rail, which services the town of Aguas Calientes.
Macusani-Corani Rock Art
Macusani and Corani, Peru 5000–2000 B.C
Peru
Between the years 2000 and 2007,more than 100 sites containing ancient paintings and petroglyphs
on volcanic rock were discovered in the Macusani and Corani districts of Puno,
Peru. The sites—which range in elevation from 4,200 to 4,600 meters above sea
level—exhibit a fantastic array of iconographic motifs, some unique to the region. Collectively, they constitute the largest concentration of art from the Archaic period in the Americas. Scholars believe the zoomorphic, hropomorphic, and geometric figures, as yet unanalyzed, will provide greater understanding of the earliest peoples of the Andean highlands.
In 2005, these sites were designated national cultural patrimony by the Peruvian government. Some of the largest deposits of uranium in Peru are found in Macusani and Corani. In 2005, mining companies began exploring the potential to develop operations in the districts where about 90 percent of the rock-art sites are found. Despite designating the sites as national patrimony that same year, the Peruvian government continued to distribute mining rights because the petroglyphs have not been mapped and a protective zone has yet to be established. Without intervention, open-pit mining will result in the estruction of the Macusani-Corani rock-art sites.
San Pedro Apostol de Andahuaylillas Church
Andahuaylillas, Peru 1570–1629
Located in the small town of Andahuaylillas, 41 kilometers from Cusco, San Pedro Apostol was built by Jesuits atop a pre-Columbian huaca—or temple—in the sixteenth century. Construction of the current church started in 1570 with the creation of a small chapel and sanctuary, followed by the nave
and façade, which were completed in 1606. The interior was decorated by Don Luis de Riaño in 1629, inspired by the humanist teachings of Don Juan Perez
de Bocanegra, the local parish priest. It is considered the “Sistine
Chapel of America” because of the beauty of its mural paintings, the most important in the Cusco region. The sanctuary has a gilt wooden ceiling in the Mudejar style. This ceiling is in precarious condition due to leaks in the
roof, insect infestation, and damage wrought by seismic activity.
In the 1980s, the ceiling was repaired but the problems persist, and another earthquake could cause the loss of its decorative elements. While a conservation
plan for the church has been completed, restoration of the ceiling has been thwarted by a lack of resources. It is hoped that Watch listing will raise public awareness of the importance of this church and support for its protection.
Santa Catalina Monastery
Arequipa, Peru 16th–18th centuriesFounded in 1579 as a cloister for Dominican nuns, the monastery of Santa Catalina is a small complex within the city of Arequipa. The
monastery consists of three cloisters, a plaza, living quarters, a painting gallery, and a chapel, and is surrounded by a high wall. Constructed of volcanic
stone, the complex is an important example of local viceregal architecture. It is also a repository for a significant collection of paintings, sculpture, and
decorative arts, providing insight into the life of the community since its founding almost 500 years ago. The complex was opened to the public in 1970 and is considered an important tourist destination. The monastery, which includes an active religious community, was declared a national cultural patrimony site in 1944 and played a major role in the inscription of the Historical Center of the City of Arequipa on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000. The destabilizing effects of seismic activity in the area threaten Santa Catalina Monastery, while pollution and salts continue to take their toll on the porous volcanic stone, weakening the building. These factors have resulted
in failure of part of the roof, in cracks and fissures and losses of stone in the walls and floors, as well as in missing mortar in joints. The section of the complex dating to the sixteenth century faces the most serious structural damage—due to recent earthquakes, sections of the vault have fallen and
critical structural elements have been compromised.
WMF ( World Momuments Fund ) En Peru
monumentos cuya Conservacion total o parcial ha sido apoyada por la fundacion:
- Centro historico de Cuzco
- Huaca de la Luna, Cerro Blanco, Trujillo
- Los Pinchudos, Parque Nacional Rio Abiseo , San Martin
- Las Capillas de los Misioneros en el valle de Oyon , Lima
- Iglesia de San Cristobal de Rapaz , Lima
- Iglesia de San Juan Bautista de Huaro, Cuzco
- Capilla de San Pedro de Mórrope , Chiclayo , Lambayeque
- Sitio Arqueologico de Túcume, Lambayeque
Imagen:Pintura mural barroca restaurada en casa Concha de Cusco. Foto: ANDINA / Fernando Zora-Carvajal
Restauradores del INC-Cusco trabajan desde hace tres años en recuperación paulatina de hermosas decoraciones. Foto: ANDINA / Fernando Zora-Carvajal.
AÑO DE LA ASTRONOMÍA
