Past Watch Site

Our Lady of Guadalupe Monastery Located in the Department of La Libertad on the north coast of Peru, the early seventeenth-century Augustinian complex of Our Lady of Guadalupe was built over the ruins of the native sanctuary of Pakatnamú as a statement of the triumph of Christianity over indigenous religion. As centuries passed, the Late Gothic-style sanctuary became the focal point of the newly established town of Guadalupe. In 1941, the Our Lady of Guadalupe was inscribed as a national monument.

Our Lady of Guadalupe was seriously damaged by an earthquake in 1970. Since then, some emergency repairs have been made, but without a comprehensive conservation plan. Structural problems have been compounded by a rise in the local water table as a result of El Niño, as well as a lack of funds, neglect, and insensitive additions. Although a preliminary conditions survey has been undertaken, the building desperately requires a comprehensive conservation plan if this historic structure is to survive.

Last update: 2004