Bolivia Guide
La Paz
Iglesia de San Francisco
Address: West side of Plaza San Francisco
Opening time: Museum daily 9am–6pm
Website: centrocultural-museosanfrancisco.org
Price: Museum $2.50
The Iglesia de San Francisco is the most beautiful colonial church in La Paz. First built in 1549 as the head-quarters of the Franciscans' campaign to christianize Alto Peru, the original structure collapsed under a heavy snowfall early in the seventeenth century. Most of what you see today was built between 1750 and 1784, financed by donations from mine owners. The richly decorated facade is a classic example of the mestizo-Baroque style, showing clear indigenous influence, with carved anthropomorphic figures reminiscent of pre-Columbian sculpture as well as more common birds and intertwined floral designs. Above the main door is a statue of St Francis himself, facing towards the old city with his arms held aloft. Inside, the walls of the church are lined with extravagantly carved altarpieces where smiling angels and abundant gold leaf frame gruesome depictions of the crucifixion or images of individual saints that are the principal objects of veneration for those who come here to pray. San Judas Tadeo, the patron saint of the poor and miserable, is particularly popular amongst indigenous supplicants. To the right of the altar, the neon halos on a figure of San Antonio carrying an infant Christ add a bizarre touch of modernity to the Baroque extravaganza. In July 2005, the elegant brick cloisters of the Centro Cultural – Museo San Francisco opened to the public after a million-dollar restoration project, exhibiting the religious art, furniture and implements of the resident Franciscans, as well as their original living quarters.