New Cathedral - The Most Artistic Cathedral of Cuenca

Source: Alex Proimos from Sydney, AustraliaAlex Proimos [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of Cuenca, known as the Cathedral of Cuenca or the New Cathedral. It is a Catholic religious building that combines several architectural styles, such as Gothic, Renaissance, and Romanesque. This Cathedral is located in the Parque Calderón, facing the central plaza of the city of Cuenca, specifically in the streets of Benigno Malo and Mariscal Sucre. It is considered one of the most important architectural attractions of Ecuador.

The construction of the Cathedral of Cuenca began in the 1880s and ended in 1975. This building has the capacity for eight thousand people. Outside, the Cathedral is notable for its sky blue domes, which stand out throughout the Historic Center since the tallest of them measures almost 60 meters.

Inside the Cathedral, you can see the colorful stained glass and its details in gold leaf and marble. The main attraction is the baldachin, which forms the four columns that cover the main altar. This work was inspired by the baldachin of the Basilica of San Pedro, located in the city of The Vatican. The plans of the temple were made by John Bautista Stiehle 105 meters long and 43.5 meters wide, the height of the central dome is 53 meters, and its diameter is 12 meters and a crypt 96 meters long, 12 meters wide and 4 long, with capacity for three thousand people. The two frontal towers in the beginning also had domes, but due to architectonic failures they were not built, the construction was in charge of Bishop León Garrido.

In addition, the Cathedral has a crypt that houses hundreds of niches and the tombs of four Bishops; and, a terrace that you can reach if you ascend by 143 steps. The most interesting sites of this building are the domes, the main door, the rosette (stained glass made by Guillermo Larrazabal, an artist of Basque origin), the high altar and the crypts.

The Cathedral can be visited every day from 08:00 to 13:30 and from 14:00 to 16:00. The tour lasts about an hour. If you enter the Cathedral, you can visit the towers and enjoy a fantastic view of the entire city. All visitors or residents of Cuenca should experience on their own the beauty and history found in one of the largest icons of Cuenca, the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception with its beautiful blue skydomes.

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Today's author is Apeksha.

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