Castillo de Lamas, Medieval-style castle in Lamas, Peru
The Castillo de Lamas is a medieval-style building with towers and thick stone walls, set among the green hills of the San Martin region in Peru. It has five floors with dining areas, living spaces, and viewing points that look out over the surrounding hills and tropical forest.
Italian architect Nicola Felice designed and built this structure in 2005, following an earthquake that caused serious damage to the community of Lamas. The project was driven by a wish to give the region a new point of interest.
Inside, murals by local artist Geens Archentti draw on both European forms and Peruvian imagery from the Andes and the Amazon. Walking through the rooms, visitors can see how two very different visual traditions sit side by side in one building.
The castle is about 22 kilometers from Tarapoto, reachable via the town of Lamas. Moving between the five floors means climbing stairs, so sturdy shoes are a good idea.
The building's foundations incorporate a natural rock formation that was built around rather than removed. This makes the structure one of the very few buildings in the Amazon region where raw geology forms part of the interior.
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