Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá: the fourth church on this site, holding the tomb of the city’s own founder
Sulla Plaza de Bolívar, a Bogotá, in Colombia, l’attuale cattedrale è la quarta chiesa costruita su questo sito dalla fondazione della città, avvenuta nel 1538; le tre precedenti caddero per problemi strutturali nel corso dei secoli coloniali. L’edificio neoclassico oggi visibile fu costruito tra l’11 febbraio 1807 e il 19 aprile 1823, su progetto del frate cappuccino spagnolo Domingo de Petrés, giunto a Santafé de Bogotá nel 1792: Petrés morì nel 1811 prima del completamento dei lavori, portati a termine dall’architetto Nicolás León. Nella Cappella di Santa Elisabetta d’Ungheria, patrona di Bogotá, riposa la tomba del conquistador Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, fondatore della città nel 1538 e morto nel 1579: le sue spoglie, sepolte inizialmente nel convento di Santo Domingo, furono trasferite a Santafé de Bogotá nel 1597 e infine collocate nella tomba attuale il 5 agosto 1938, in occasione delle celebrazioni per il quarto centenario della città; il monumento, scolpito da Luis Alberto Acuña, reca l’iscrizione richiesta dallo stesso Quesada nel testamento, “Expecto Resurrectionem Mortuorum” (“Attendo la resurrezione dei morti”). L’edificio occupa circa 5.300 metri quadrati, con due torri alte circa 52 metri, e conta dodici cappelle laterali, un organo a canne restaurato con circa 4.500 canne, tra i più grandi della Colombia, e dipinti coloniali, tra cui opere attribuite al pittore Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos. La cattedrale è sede dell’Arcidiocesi di Bogotá, il cui arcivescovo porta dal 1902 il titolo di Primate di Colombia, e fu dichiarata monumento nazionale nel 1975, affacciata sulla Plaza de Bolívar accanto agli edifici del governo colombiano.
About the Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá
On the Plaza de Bolívar in Bogotá, Colombia, the present cathedral is the fourth church built on this site since the city’s founding in 1538; the three earlier structures were lost to structural problems over the colonial centuries. The Neoclassical building visible today was constructed between 11 February 1807 and 19 April 1823, designed by the Spanish Capuchin friar Domingo de Petrés, who had arrived in Santafé de Bogotá in 1792; Petrés died in 1811 before construction was complete, and the architect Nicolás León finished the remaining work. In the Chapel of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Bogotá’s patron saint, lies the tomb of the conquistador Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, who founded the city in 1538 and died in 1579; his remains, initially buried at the Santo Domingo convent, were transferred to Santafé de Bogotá in 1597 and finally placed in their present tomb on 5 August 1938, during celebrations marking the city’s fourth centenary, with the monument, sculpted by Luis Alberto Acuña, bearing the Latin epitaph Quesada himself requested in his will, “Expecto Resurrectionem Mortuorum” — “I await the resurrection of the dead.” The building covers roughly 5,300 square metres, with two towers about 52 metres tall, and holds twelve side chapels, a restored pipe organ with some 4,500 pipes, among the largest in Colombia, and colonial-era paintings, including works attributed to the painter Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos. The cathedral serves as the seat of the Archdiocese of Bogotá, whose archbishop has held the title of Primate of Colombia since 1902, and was declared a national monument in 1975, facing the Plaza de Bolívar alongside Colombia’s principal government buildings.
Key facts
- 1538: the site’s first church, founded alongside the city itself
- 1807-1823: construction of the current, fourth building, designed by Domingo de Petrés
- Tomb of Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, Bogotá’s founder, placed here in 1938
- ~5,300 square metres, two towers roughly 52 metres tall
- ~4,500-pipe organ, among the largest in Colombia
- 1975: declared a Colombian national monument
History
The Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá’s status as the fourth church raised on this site since the city’s 1538 founding reflects the recurring structural challenges faced by colonial-era religious buildings, resolved definitively only with Domingo de Petrés’s Neoclassical design in the early 19th century. The long, multi-stage journey of Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada’s remains, from their initial 1579 burial through several relocations before finally reaching the cathedral in 1938, mirrors Colombia’s own evolving relationship with its colonial-era founding figures across nearly four centuries.
What you see
Domingo de Petrés’s Neoclassical facade, completed by Nicolás León in 1823, rises with twin towers roughly 52 metres tall above the Plaza de Bolívar, framing an interior of twelve side chapels and a large restored pipe organ. The Chapel of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary houses the sculpted tomb of Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada, while colonial-era paintings, including works attributed to Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos, line the cathedral’s interior.
Practical information
- Opening hours: generally open daily with seasonal variation; free admission; check current hours before visiting
- Address: Plaza de Bolívar, La Candelaria, Bogotá, Colombia
Getting there
The Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá stands on the Plaza de Bolívar in the historic La Candelaria district, easily reached on foot within central Bogotá. GPS: 4.5981° N, 74.0753° W.
Nearby
- Capitolio Nacional — Colombia’s Congress building, on the same square
- Palacio de Justicia — the national justice palace, nearby
- La Candelaria — Bogotá’s historic colonial-era district, surrounding the cathedral
Sources
- Wikipedia — “Primatial Cathedral of Bogotá” (en.wikipedia.org)
- Wikipedia (Spanish) — “Catedral primada de Colombia” (es.wikipedia.org)
- El Espectador — “Expectamus Resurrectionem Mortuorum: los sepulcros del fundador de Bogotá” (elespectador.com)
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