Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
MANZANA DE LAS LUCES
MAP
NOTABLE BUILDING
GOOGLE MAP
(Block of Enlightenment; 4342-3964;
www.manazadelasluces.org
;
Perú 272; tours AR$15; tours
3pm Mon-Fri, 3pm, 4:30pm & 6pm Sat & Sun)
In colonial times, the Manzana de las Luces was
Buenos Aires' most important center of culture and learning. Even today, this collection
of buildings still symbolizes high culture in the capital. On the northern side of the block
are two of the five original buildings; Jesuit defensive tunnels were discovered in 1912.
Tours (in Spanish) are available, and a cultural center on the premises offers classes,
workshops and theater.
The first people to occupy the Manzana de las Luces were the Jesuits, who built several
structures including the Procuraduría (1730; administrative headquarters), part of which
still survives today. (Unfortunately for the Jesuits, they were eventually expelled from the
premises - and Argentina - in 1767 by the Spanish, who felt politically threatened by
them.) Along with housing offices, these buildings hosted converted indigenous people
from the provinces. Later, during the 19th century, they were home to various museums,
legislative offices, schools and universities.
The city's oldest church, the
Iglesia San Ignacio
(1734), is also located here, originally
built in adobe in 1661 and rebuilt or remodelled several times since. Today there remains
only a single original cloister; it shares a wall with the
Colegio Nacional de Buenos Aires
(1863), a prep school where generations of the Argentine elite still send their children to
receive secondary schooling. The city's oldest bookstore,
La Librería de Avila
, is also
nearby at Alsina and Bolívar.
MUSEO DE LA CIUDAD
( 4343-2123; Defensa 219; admission AR$1; 11am-7pm Mon-Fri, 10am-8pm Sat & Sun)
This up-
stairs museum was closed at research time due to major restoration, but in the future you
should expect both permanent and temporary exhibitions on porteño life and history here.
Downstairs is a large hall showcasing salvaged doors and ancient hardware. Nearby, at the
corner of Alsina and Defensa, is the
Farmacia de la Estrella
(1835), a functioning homeo-
pathic pharmacy with gorgeous woodwork and elaborate late-19th-century ceiling murals
depicting health-oriented themes. Occasionally the museum opens via its Alsina 412 door.
MUSEUM
MUSEO ETNOGRÁFICO JUAN B AMBROSETTI
MAP
MUSEUM
GOOGLE MAP
