Templo Santo Domingo, Colonial church in La Paz, Bolivia.
Templo Santo Domingo is a colonial church located in central La Paz that showcases elaborate stone carvings on its exterior walls. The building features columns adorned with grape bunches and carved motifs depicting parrots and papayas across its facade.
The church was established in 1590 and later served as La Paz cathedral from 1826 through the early twentieth century. Its role at the center of the city's religious life for centuries shaped its importance as an enduring landmark.
The name recalls the Dominican order that founded the church in 1590; only the temple survives, as the convent buildings passed to the Colegio Ayacucho. Inside, the image of Jesús de Nazaret is venerated for having wept tears of blood in 1622, and a bishop's right hand is kept in a stone urn from Huamanga, said to belong to a prelate who never touched money with it.
The building sits between Ingavi Street and Yanaconcha Street in downtown La Paz, making it easy to reach by public transportation. Visitors should know that regular services take place and visiting hours may vary throughout the week.
Among the relics kept here are a figure of Jesus of Nazareth said to have wept tears of blood in 1622, and the right hand of a bishop preserved in a stone urn of Huamanga. The bishop reportedly never touched money with that hand, considering it impure.
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