Facing the Plaza de Mayo, the Metropolitan Cathedral is the Catholic Church's main site in Argentina, and is where Pope Francis, as Archbishop Jorge Bergoglio, used to perform mass before assuming office in the Vatican in 2013. In Bergoglio's honour, the Cathedral now houses the Pope Francis Museum, which exhibits some of his personal and liturgical objects.
The Cathedral’s history is a long and turbulent one. Since the first chapel on the same site was constructed in 1593 under the orders of the city’s founder Juan de Garay, the building has been redesigned and rebuilt seven times. The last construction, the one that we see today, was started in 1752 but not completed until the mid-nineteenth century.
You may be struck by the building’s façade, more reminiscent of a Greek temple perhaps than a Catholic church. The twelve Neo-Classical columns at the front represent the twelve apostles of Christ, supporting a triangular frontispiece. This frontispiece, in bas-relief, depicts the encounter between Jacob and his son, Joseph, in Egypt, and was intended as an allegory of the unity of the Argentine nation after civil unrest.
Please don't hesitate to send us your suggestions!
Submit your suggestion
