Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The museum has examples of religious art, including various paintings from the Potosí
school, such as
The Erection of the Cross
by Melchor Pérez de Holguín, various
mid-19th-century works by Juan de la Cruz Tapia and 25 scenes from the life of St Fran-
cis of Assisi.
The highlight of the obligatory tour (ask for an English-speaking guide), which has no
real schedule and lasts about 1½ hours, comes at the end, when you're ushered up the
tower and onto the roof for a grand view of Potosí. You also visit the catacombs, which
have a smattering of human bones and a subterranean river running nearby.
Torre de la Compañía de Jesús
(Ayacucho nr Bustillos; mirador admission B$10; 8-11:30am & 2-5:30pm Mon-Fri,
8am-noon Sat)
The ornate and beautiful bell tower, on what remains of the former Jesuit
church, was completed in 1707 after the collapse of the original church. Both the tower
and the doorway are adorned with examples of mestizo baroque ornamentation.
CHURCH
Cathedral
(Plaza 10 de Noviembre)
Construction of Potosí's cathedral was initiated in 1564 and fi-
nally completed around 1600. The original building lasted until the early 19th century,
when it mostly collapsed. Most of what is now visible is the neoclassical construction and
the building's elegant lines represent one of Bolivia's best exemplars of that style. The in-
terior decor represents some of the finest in Potosí. You can visit the
bell tower
(admis-
sion B$10;
CHURCH
8am-noon & 2-6pm Mon-Fri)
for nice views of the city.
THE JOB FROM HELL
In the cooperative mines on Cerro Rico, all work is done with mostly primitive tools and underground temperat-
ures vary from below freezing - the altitude is more than 4200m - to a stifling 115°F on the 4th and 5th levels.
Miners, exposed to all sorts of noxious chemicals and gases, normally die of silicosis pneumonia within 10 to 15
years of entering the mines.
Women are admitted to many cooperative mines but only five are allowed to be in the mine's interior at any one
time. That's because quite a few miners hang on to the tradition that women underground invite bad luck and, in
many cases, the taboo applies only to miners' wives, whose presence in the mines would invite jealousy from
Pachamama (Mother Earth). At any rate, lots of Quechua women are consigned to stay right outside the mines
picking through the tailings, gleaning small amounts of minerals that may have been missed.
