“Cuenca doesn’t look like a sixteenth-century city that has been preserved; it looks like a city that has been in use since the sixteenth century” Calvin Trillin

There are so many things I love about Cuenca, but my absolute favorite thing is the architecture. On December 1, 1999 the Historic Center of Cuenca was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in recognition of the historical, cultural and architectural merits of the city. So 2019 is the 20 year anniversary of that designation.

My fabulous Spanish teacher, Cristina Flores Ortiz,with Walking Spanish Lessons, knows of my love for the architecture, and she presented me with a copy of a book published by the City of Cuenca in 2007 – “Guia de Arquitectura Cuenca.” I decided I would like to follow along with the same format as this book, and take pictures of the buildings as they are today, with their current usages. There are 165 buildings featured, so this will take some time. Some of them are very recognizable historic landmarks – such as the cathedrals. Some you might have walked by, and wondered about the history of that particular building. And some you might have walked by and not noticed at all… The book only includes one photo of each structure, and it is always only one exterior photo. I will try to include multiple photos, and also interior photos when possible, whenever access to the interior is available. All of the photos are mine, unless otherwise noted. The old historical photos come from various sources.
The historical facts are coming from the City of Cuenca, so I am assuming the history is correct. I am doing this only for the fun and love of it. I believe when you love something you want to learn as much as you can about it.
I hope some of you will enjoy following along on this tour of Cuenca historical architecture.
Jane Hiltbrand
August 5, 2019
http://www.architecturalcuenca.com