The old and the new Peru

by Marie Robinson Wright

In appearance and style, the Lima of the viceroyalty has been compared with Seville, except that its streets were broader and straighter than those of the Andalusian metropolis, and showed signs of greater activity. As the capital of the republic, the city has grown larger, more modern in appearance, and more western in atmosphere; yet there is still much of the charm of the past in the massive street doors, barred windows and Moorish balconies, or miradores, some of them built of mahogany and carved in handsome designs. The portales, arcades that extend along the sides of the plazas, forming a sheltered walk in front of the shops, and usually thronged with people, are a survival of colonial architecture. The old churches and convents retain the attractiveness of venerable edifices which have served as places of devotion for many generations. All these features are too charming to be dispensed with, and it is to be hoped that the necessities of modern improvement will not soon demand their destruction.

What scenes are suggested by the beautiful Plaza Mayor! On the north side stands the government palace, once the palace of the viceroys, whose court was the talk of two continents during the rule of the Marquis de Cañete, the Duke de Palata, and the dilettante Prince de Esquilache; in its spacious salons gay festivals were celebrated by the Viceroy Amat and his courtiers. A short distance away is the site of the assassination of Pizarro; and, overlooking the plaza, from the eastern side, the great cathedral turns one’s thoughts back to those early days when its first foundations were laid by the Conqueror, whose remains it shelters. The archbishop’s palace adjoins the cathedral. On the western side of the plaza stands the city hall, both the western and southern sides being faced by handsome portales, above which are the balconies of the principal social clubs.

The brilliant functions of the viceroy’s court, that illuminated the palace on the north side of the plaza a century ago, could hardly have been more elaborate or more elegant than the entertainments which are given to-day in the handsome quarters of the Union Club, overlooking the plaza from the opposite side, or in the Nacional Club, a few blocks away. The balls and banquets held by these societies in honor of distinguished visitors are memorable affairs: as when Mr. Root was entertained with true Peruvian hospitality in a series of brilliant social events under their auspices. The beautiful bronze fountain, more than two hundred and fifty years old, which forms the centre-piece of the great plaza, is an ornament of rare value. A short distance from the square is located the Plaza de la Inquisicion, where, during the viceroyalty, the tribunals of the Inquisition were held. The building in which the Holy Office had its court is now the Senate Chamber of the republic. The interior of this edifice possesses peculiar interest. The ceiling is of carved mahogany, a magnificent example of workmanship; the mahogany table used to-day by the honorable Senate when writing the laws that govern a free people is the same on which the death warrant was signed in the tyrannous period of the auto de fé. In the centre of this plaza stands an equestrian statue erected to immortalize the hero of the Independence, Simon Bolivar. The statue, superbly sculptured, is of bronze, and rests on a pedestal of white marble, with bas-reliefs on the sides, representing the battles of Junin and Ayacucho.

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM, LIMA.

Lima has not been forgetful of the heroes of her liberty. In the beautiful Plaza de la Exposicion, at the entrance to the Paseo Colón, a handsome marble column stands to honor the memory of the other Liberator, General San Martin. It was presented to the city of Lima by a patriotic Peruvian, Colonel Lorenzo Pérez Roca. The lower terminus of the Paseo Colón, where Lima’s fashionable driveway widens at the converging of six beautiful avenues, is marked by a spacious circle, that provides an imposing site for one of the most notable monuments in South America, erected recently to commemorate the sacrifice of the glorious hero, Colonel Bolognesi, on the heights of Arica, where, having given his answer when asked to surrender—“Not till I have burned my last cartridge!”—he fell under the enemy’s fire. The monument is the work of the Spanish sculptor, Querol. It rests on steps of granite, the base being a granite block, supporting a column of white marble. Around the base are allegorical scenes, and the capital is also artistically finished in allegorical design. The statue which surmounts the column represents the hero in the act of falling, mortally wounded, with his country’s flag held close to his heart. Another handsome monument in the Paseo Colón is dedicated to Christopher Columbus, for whom the driveway is named. It is of white marble, and was designed by the Italian sculptor, Salvatore Revelli, the same model having been used for the monument in the port of Colón, Panamá. On the road to Callao, a magnificent column of Carrara marble, seventy-five feet high, and crowned by a statue of Victory, commemorates the successful defence of the port of Callao against the Spaniards on the 2d of May, 1866.

THE MUNICIPAL INSTITUTE OF HYGIENE.

PLAZUELA DE LA RECOLETA.