Today’s
The World Around Us
will be presented
in Spanish,
with subtitles in Arabic,
Aulacese (Vietnamese),
Chinese, English,
French, German,
Indonesian, Japanese,
Korean, Malay,
Persian, Portuguese,
Russian, Spanish
and Thai.
Welcome to today’s
The World Around Us
on Supreme Master
Television.
In this program
we will visit the oldest
public space in Peru,
located in its capital city:
The Historic Center
of the City of Lima.
During their second
journey to the Americas
in 1528,
the Spanish explorer
Francisco Pizarro and
his crew arrived for
the very first time to what
is now known as Peru.
The word “Lima” comes
from the indigenous
Quechua word Rímac,
which literally means
“talker”.
The city has been known
by its new name Lima
since January 18, 1535.
On November 20, 1542,
during the reign of
King Carlos I of Spain,
the first Viceroy of Peru
was appointed through
the Royal Decree
of Barcelona.
The viceroy’s
responsibility covered
a vast area.
Initially, the boundaries
extended from Panama
to the River Plate
in Argentina,
reaching the limits of
the Amazon Rainforest.
Lima was the capital
of this vast area and was
also called by many as
“The City of Kings.”
This was perhaps
as a tribute to the Kings
of Spain, or maybe,
according to popular
storytelling, because
Lima was discovered
on January 6, the day
of celebration in Spain
for the three Wise men.
The city was first
designed by the explorer
Francisco Pizarro in 1535.
He sketched a small area
of 13 squares long
and 9 squares wide,
constructing
only 36 edifices.
Such a simple city
had a central plaza,
and the main buildings
of government were
located around this area.
However, the port city
grew very fast
and became
the first metropolis
of South America.
The burgeoning
economic growth of the
city allowed aristocrats
to build splendid edifices
and luxurious houses.
In addition,
Lima came to house
the Royal Audiencia,
the busiest court
in the New World.
Lima also housed the
main ecclesiastic center
with a complex of
new churches, convents
and monasteries.
Furthermore,
the arrival of numerous
Christian monastic orders
gave birth to the renewal
of spirituality in Lima.
Let’s now make a stop
at some of the
most notable sites here.
La Plaza Mayor,
also known as La Plaza
de Armas de Lima,
is the main public space
in the whole city.
Nowadays, La Plaza
Mayor is surrounded
by important edifices.
We are currently looking
at a beautiful fountain
in the middle of
the Plaza de Armas, and
this pool was built by
the Viceroy Francisco de
Toledo, which opened
on October 21, 1578.
It consisted of a baluster,
an upper basin,
and in it eight masks
and their pipes
through which water
fell into the main basin;
above the basin on a ball
that distributed all the
water to fall on the basin.
On the ball there was
a figure with a shield
on one side with the arms
of the city and
in his hand he held a flag
on which the arms of
the Viceroy Toledo
were sculpted.
This pool was replaced
by another ordered
by the Viceroy García
Sarmiento de Sotomayor,
Count of Salvatierra,
and inaugurated
on September 8, 1651,
which with some repairs
is maintained today.
La Plaza de Armas is
the oldest public area
in Peru, and is visited
by thousands of tourists
every day
from all over the world.
Very good afternoon sir,
it’s a pleasure madam,
very good afternoon
for Supreme Master
Television from Lima,
Peru in the city,
the same square,
where we walked a bit,
enjoying the weather.
What is your name sir?
Armando Silva.
Armando Silva,
are you from Peru?
Born in Peru, but now
based in Boston,
Massachusetts (USA).
Good.
The lady, is your mother
from the city?
My mother is, yes.
She was born
in Argentina but has
lived here for 80 years.
What do you think of
the Plaza de Armas,
ma'am?
Oh, it’s charming.
It has changed a lot and
looks more beautiful
at night with its lights,
no? It’s visited a lot.
It’s more than that.
Here when we visit
the Plaza de Armas,
we really have
four places to visit –
the Government Palace,
the Cathedral of Lima,
the Archbishop's Palace,
City Hall and even
the House of the Judge,
right?
When we return,
we’ll tour
the Cathedral of Lima,
the Archbishop’s Palace,
and more, all here
at the Historic Center of
the City of Lima, Peru.
Please stay tuned to
Supreme Master
Television.
Welcome back to
The World Around Us.
The city of Lima
has been always open
to the world’s
architectural trends.
When the cathedral was
initially built in 1625,
the baroque style
was in fashion.
By the end of 1797,
when it was fully finished,
the trend in vogue
was rococo.
However, the bell towers
fell in the eighteenth
century, and when
they decided to rebuild it
in the 19th century,
the new style of fashion,
the Neoclassical style
had arrived in Peru.
The holy edifice still
remains on the east side
of the Plaza.
The Cathedral of Lima
contains vast amounts
of colonial art,
sacred imagery,
altars covered in gold,
and an impressive Choir.
The benches of the Choir
and of the cathedral itself
are made with
beautiful wood
of the finest quality.
Many rooms also contain
exquisite pieces of
metal crafts, apparel,
oil paintings,
and art works from
around the 17th century.
The Palace of
the Government of Peru,
which we are focusing on
right now,
is the headquarters of
the Peruvian executive
branch,
and the residence
of the President
of the Republic of Peru.
It measures 19,200
square meters and about
200 people work there.
To the left of the building,
overlooking Fish Street,
designed by the Polish
architect Ricardo de Jaxa
Malachowski in 1926,
was occupied by the
Ministry of Justice until
the second government
of the architect Fernando
Belaunde Terry.
The present building
which certainly is not
what Pizarro imagined,
dates back to 1938, but
in one of its courtyards
a fig tree has sprouted up
that according to legend
is more than four
and a half centuries old.
The palace is considered
an historical monument
and in its different
architectural versions
has hosted certainly
distinguished guests from
Francisco Pizarro,
their founder, and
liberator Simon Bolivar
to the King of Spain
Juan Carlos I de Borbón
on his official visit to
Peru in November 1978,
not counting
the 40 viceroys, 53
leaders and presidents.
Beautifully made
in the 17th century,
this harmonious ensemble
contains the Church and
Convent of San Francisco
and the Chapels of
El Milagro (The Miracle)
and La Soledad
(Solitude).
Any visitor can enter
the inside of the convent,
which is currently the
Museum of Religious Art
and of the Sala Zurbarán
with its paintings
of the Apostles.
The church that
we see before us
dates back to 1672,
built in the baroque style.
Now beneath this church
is the main attraction of
the city, the Catacombs,
which were used
as a public cemetery
in colonial Lima.
On the side is
the Monastery of
San Francisco that
is older than the church,
dating back to 1560 or so.
San Francisco,
Santo Domingo,
Las Mercedarias and
the Jesuits were
the main orders that
arrived in Peru,
and this Monastery is
one of the oldest.
For Supreme Master
Television,
at this time we are
in the Convent of
San Francisco,
in the city of Lima.
It’s a castle of God
in the City of Kings.
Along with the church
of La Merced,
this vast sacred building
offers the most spectacular
and magnificent
facade of Lima.
The two bright yellow
massive towers that
rise up in the monumental
area of the capital
of Peru, evoke the idea
of a bastion of faith and
frame the entry to a
dark stone-carved altar,
in the center of which
is a beautiful sculpture
of the Immaculate.
This main entrance
is surmounted by
a medallion filigree
representing the sign
of Christ surrounded
by a circle of rays.
Next, let’s go to
the Archbishop’s Palace.
The Archbishop's Palace
of Lima is also found
in the Plaza de Armas
or Plaza Mayor.
At this point we face
the Archbishop's Palace
and the residence of
the Archbishop of Lima
and the administrative
headquarters of
the Archdiocese of Lima.
It’s located
in the Plaza de Armas
in the corner made by
Junin and Carabaya.
Also, this institution
houses the offices of
the Cardinal Archbishop
of Lima, currently Bishop
Juan Luis Cipriani.
There are many other
important buildings
which are part of the
historic center of the city,
among those are:
The Church of Nazarenes,
the Tagle Tower,
the Aliaga House,
the Church of St Agustin,
the Basílica of
Our Lady of Merced,
and many, many other
handsome buildings,
as well as important
public spaces such as
the University Park
with an old clock tower.
On December 12, 1991,
the United Nations
Educational, Scientific
and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO)
declared the Historic
Center of Lima
as a World Heritage Site.
This is owing to its vital
role as a main capital city
for two centuries
during the colony, and
for having a group of
608 historic monuments
of the Hispanic era.
It was this recognition
that made the municipal
government of Lima
move towards the
protection and renovation
of this historic area.
This included
the enhancement and
preservation of
nearby residential areas
in addition to the main
historic buildings.
The city of Lima
has been the venue of
many important events
and a meeting place for
the artistic and literary
trends of the South
American continent
and the rest of the world.
The streets of Lima
host attractive centers of
traditional art and crafts
of Peru and the rest
of South America.
The shops of
well-made silver items,
tranquil residential areas,
and the beautiful gardens
are very well taken care of.
It is not only
the main historic area
that receives care
but the whole capital
is very well looked after
and constantly renewed.
Anyone who comes to
Lima, Peru will surely
find themselves
walking with a smile,
enjoying the beauty,
warmth, spirituality, and
history imbued in the city
and its residents.
Thank you for being
with us on today’s
The World Around Us.
Now, please stay tuned to
Supreme Master
Television
for Words of Wisdom,
after Noteworthy News.
May the Providence
bless you and
your cherished ones.