Salta, San Francisco (69 K)

Salta City
Historical tour of the City: The city of Salta has a strong Hispanic imprint. It is probably the city that has the strongest colonial athmosphere in Argentina.. The houses are low, the streets are narrow, and the mountains can be seen from everywhere.

San Francisco Church :
At the foundation of the city of Salta, the lot for the Franciscan Order was settled from the very beginning. Work at it was begun and the church and convent were ready in 1625. Since the construction was not very strong, a second temple was built in 1674 which was destroyed by a fire in the middle of the XVIII th century.
The construction began, under the direction of Brother Vicente Muñóz, architect of the church of San Francisco in Buenos Aires and of the magnificent dome of the Cathedral of Córdoba. These churches resemble the Cathedrals of Zamora and Salamanca in Spain.
Manuel Belgrano attended the funeral mass in this church after the Battle of Salta. The bells in this temple were manufactured with the brass of the canyons used in that battle.
San Francisco suffered yet another reform in 1870, where the architect Luis Giorgi, modified the frontgiving it a higher tower , the highest in South America with its 53 m.
The temple has valuable works of art, among which the image of Nuestra Señora de las Nieves stands out. It is said that it was the first image of the Virgin that arrived at this city; a San Pedro of Alcántara - attributed to the celebrated sculptor and Spanish architect Alonso Cano and a painting of Saint Francis that some specialists attribute to Pitti others to Zurbarán. There is also a small museum where works of interest are preserved.
The library of the convent possesses magnificent incunabula and very old editions of great value. The church San Francisco was declared National Historical Monument in 1941.

Town council:
Successive constructions replaced the Cabildo built 1582 for the first time. The building that we see today is from the year 1783.
It is a solid construction of very simple lines, resolved around interior patios. The façade and the tower give charm to the building.
There are two museums where valuable collections are kept. It was declared National Historical Monument in 1941

San Bernardo Convent :
This convent is the oldest religious construction in Salta. At the beginning it was the Chapel of San Bernardo, then it was a Hospital called San Andrés, since last century it is the Monastery of Carmelites. Its entrance carved in wood is a master piece of colonial art. It was carried out by indians in 1762. It was declared National Historical Monument in 1941.

Cathedral Basilica:
This magnificent temple was built in 1858, and it replaced the old Cathedral, damaged by a fire. The façade with friezes and cornices is framed in a classic Italian style. It has three naves and it possesses an exuberant ornamentation.
The images that are preserved are el Señor y la Virgen del Milagro, patrons of the city since 1692. There are magnificent exponents of the Spanish imagery of the XVIth century. together with beautiful American paintings of great value: la Asunción de María Santísima and Nuestra Señora de los Dolores. .
The altar, conceived as a gigantic custody where the sun has the total width of the central nave, is the late Baroque work of the Franciscan architect Luis Giorgi.
In the temple in the Vault of the Glories of the North - declared National Historical Monument in 1941 -, rest General Martín de Güemes and Antonio de Arenales and Mrs. Martina of Gurruchaga. The Cathedral Basilica was declared National Historical Monument in 1947.

Iglesia de la Candelaria: (Candelaria Church)
The original temple of 1853 collapsed, being rebuilt 20 years later. During the civil war of 1884 it served as refuge and improvised hospital during the epidemic of cholera of 1888. The Virgin that presides over the altar, was brought from the country property of La Viña, in Campo Santo. The temple has paintings of the Cuzco school.

Monument for Güemes:
At the foot of the hill of San Bernardo, and presiding over the city is the beautiful monument to General Güemes worked in stone of the same hill. It culminates with the hero's equestrian figure. This monument was projected and executed by the sculptor Victor Gariño, the sculptural group and the bas-reliefs that ornament the sides of stone were made in the Arsenal of War of the Army. The monument was inaugurated in February 1931, by the President of Argentina General José Félix Uriburu.

Monument 20th February:
In the north sector of the city, the Monument of the Battle of Salta, known as the monument for the 20th February ,the date of Belgrano's victory in 1813. This monument projected by the sculptor Torcuato Tasso, and the basement, was made in stone from the neighbouring hills. There is a magnificent Victoria that symbolises the battle.