Huancavelica Attractions
Huancavelica is a remote and beautiful colonial town set in the mountains. It is the capital of this little visited department of the same name and boasts some impressive colonial architecture, including eight churches.
Huancavelica was inhabited by the Incas prior to being discovered by the Spanish. The area became important to the Spanish shortly after the conquest, when they learned the region contained mercury and silver. They used Indian slaves who were forced to work in the mines. At that time a railway was built to transport goods from the mine to Lima. Today, this same track carries passengers to Huancayo.
The town has several colonial churches, which are known for their unique silver-plated altars. (Most altars in Peruvian churches are gold plated.) Sunday is Market Day, although there are small daily markets as well.The Huancavelica area is very high and can be very cold and wet in the rainy season of December through April. Roads up here sometimes become impassable during this time period.
Huancavelica was inhabited by the Incas prior to being discovered by the Spanish. The area became important to the Spanish shortly after the conquest, when they learned the region contained mercury and silver. They used Indian slaves who were forced to work in the mines. At that time a railway was built to transport goods from the mine to Lima. Today, this same track carries passengers to Huancayo.
The town has several colonial churches, which are known for their unique silver-plated altars. (Most altars in Peruvian churches are gold plated.) Sunday is Market Day, although there are small daily markets as well.The Huancavelica area is very high and can be very cold and wet in the rainy season of December through April. Roads up here sometimes become impassable during this time period.
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