#28. IGLESIA DEL SANTO CENACULOCorner of Simon Bolivar and Tarqui. Built 1894-1912.
The first stone of this church was laid on May 24, 1894. It was the last work of this type to be designed by the Redemptorist monk Brother Juan B. Stiehle.
The building was completed in an incredibly short space of time, given the conditions of the period, and on several occasions mingas, or work-in-kind by the community were used to speed up the process, which culminated in 1912.
The columns display the image of the Holy Sacrament, a recurrent symbol in this church devoted to Holy Communion.
#27 LA CASA DEL COCO. Calle Simon Bolivar 12-60. Built in 1890.
This building was the property of Florencia Astudillo Valdivieso, one of the wealthiest women in the region at that time. This house is one of the best fusion examples between the colonial style and French decoration. It’s main room was richly decorated with tin sheets imported from France and its facade was decorated with friezes, columns and frames giving the house an elegant republican style.
Currently there are offices for the Municipality of Cuenca on the first floor. The Tourism Foundation of Cuenca has offices on the second floor.
In most colonial houses, there was a courtyard in the front of the house, and an additional second courtyard behind that in the rear.
It is such an exceptional building to showcase the beauty of Cuenca!
The building is currently owned by the Moscoso family. Gustavo Moscoso is a famous Ecuadorian clothing designer, with offices in Cuenca, and New York City.
#26. BOLIVAR CLINIC. Calles Simon Bolivar y Juan Montalvo. Built in 1929.
This corner building was constructed by Manuel Felipe Ullauri for his family. It is very similar in materials, design and style to the Manuel Arce Torres House on the same street overlooking Parque Calderon.
After the owners death, the building was turned into a tenement house, a function it maintained for close to 50 years, and it also provided premises for the former Criminal Investigation Services.
The building was purchased by the Bolivar Clinic Foundation in 1982.
There is a central courtyard, with a glass roof, and also a rooftop auditorium.
Some of the window parapets are decorated with floral and plant motifs in the Louis XIV style.
#25 CHINA BUILDING 9-52 Simon Bolivar. Built 1909-1913.
Who is that handsome man in the window? If you have ever taken the double-decker bus, or walked down the street on Simon Bolivar, you have probably seen a well dressed man on the balcony of this building.
“The China House” was the popular name given to this building as description of the facade, which is clad from top to bottom in pieces of china. These were probably a special commission from France, produced according to a specific quantity, shape, size and color to form a design for the complete facade.
The balconies, balustrades and other metal elements were imported from England and display the same Art Nouveau style as the facade.
A handsome staircase leads to the second level.
There he is! A mannequin stands in the window of the shop of David Anthony, a custom man’s suit tailor.
The entire shop is covered with polychrome brass on the ceilings and walls.
David Anthony can tailor make a man’s suit in five days! — David Anthony – Trajes para Hombre.
The emerald green and cream ceramic pieces have a polished finish, which has prevented their deterioration by the local weather conditions as well as the state of neglect into which the building fell for several decades while serving as a tenement house.
#23 ANTIGUA CASA DEL DOCTOR MANUEL ARCE TORRES Built 1898-1907. Corner of Benigno Malo and Simon Bolivar.
The French style facade of this building dominates the northwest corner of Calderón Square, displaying a design attributed to the German Redemptorist monk Juan Bautista Stiehle. The first owner, Manuel Arce Torres, who exported straw Panama hats, lived on the outskirts of the city in the El Vecino district, and conceived the building to accommodate living quarters for his family on the upper floors and commercial premises on the ground floor.
This imposing work of architecture testifies to the economic and cultural boom experienced in Cuenca at the beginning of the 20th century.
The building currently houses Del Parque Hotel and Suites on the upper levels, and several popular restaurants and stores on the street level.
photos from Del Parque Hotel and Suites website
A little further down Bolivar Street, the Bolivar Clinic displays formal characteristics very similar to those of this building.
Built in 1910. This building with a marked French influence, was conceived by the French artist Giussepe Majon and supervised by Manuel Ordonez Mata, the owner. The stained glass windows were imported from Belgium and the polychrome brass for the ceilings came from France.
Hortensia Mata was a businesswoman and philanthropist who married the wealthy José Miguel Ordóñez Lazo, and together they were part of the political and economic power groups nationwide, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Sixteen children were born from this marriage and the family lived in this house previously known as the Casa Ordonez Jerves. Hortensia was known as the “First Lady of Cuenca” She and her family additionally owned the large magnificent yellow building on Luis Cordero, now called “Casa del Parque” across from Parque Calderon, and currently owned by the Eljuri family.
The first level coming back from Simon Bolivar now houses several stores and businesses. As with many buildings in Cuenca, the interior is much larger than it might seem to be from the street, as the buildings are quite deep – they extend back from the street for a considerable distance.
The front door looks out to Parque Calderon.
From the rear of the building, and up two more levels, the building is used mostly for office spaces.
Grand old staircase.
The passage is from Simon Bolivar, back, and then in an L shape, out to Luis Cordero Street.
In the front of the building there is a charming coffee house.
#21 SAN LUIS SEMINARY Benigno Malo y Simon Bolivar
Photo from 1920 San Luis Seminario with the celebration of the first century of the Independence of Cuenca.
The first seminary in Cuenca was founded in September 1813. In addition to theology, law and medicine were taught. The funds for its operation were provided by a tax on cacao exports.
Inside the seminary building there is an impressive view of the domes of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (the New Cathedral)
The inside of the seminary courtyard was opened to the public in 2017 after a long restoration process. It is a lovely space to enjoy a meal, or music. There are several ferias held in the courtyard throughout the year.
The second courtyard can be accessed from several of the restaurants, and from Santa Ana Street. The building is composed mainly of adobe walls and solid bricks.
There is now a good selection of very popular restaurants, coffee shops, stores, and an ice cream parlor inside the renovated San Luis Seminary.
There is a chapel inside the Seminary.
Santa Ana Street runs between the New Cathedral and San Luis Seminary. It is said to be one of the oldest streets in Cuenca.
Photo #1 Seminary in 1910. The New Cathedral is under construction to the left. Photo #2 San Luis Seminary Roof, after the fire August 2012. Investigators said the fire was the result of fireworks from a Parque Calderon celebration. The fire destroyed the central part of the roof, as well as an interior chapel that contained wall murals which had recently been restored. A large restoration project began after the fire. Many parts of the seminary were not being used prior to that.
#19 FORMER NEIRA FAMILY HOUSE Currently the Flore Hotel Boutique. Padre Aguirre and Mariscal Sucre.
The building was originally built in 1932, in the Republican Style which prevailed in Cuenca at that time. It has gone through two major renovations – one in the 1990s, and the second in 2008. It is currently occupied by the Flore Hotel Boutique, with shops on the first floor.
The building is across the street from the Flower Market
There is a charming coffee shop/ restaurant on the first floor.
View from the cupola on the top floor
View at night across to the roof and domes of the New Cathedral
#18 THE FLOWER MARKET Mariscal Sucre y Padre Aguirre.
An extremely colorful plaza in front of the Santuario Mariano Church. National Geographic considers it one of the top ten outdoor flower markets in the world!
The Flower Market, with no flowers. During the Coronavirus quarantine, May 2020.
#16 Azuay Ecuadorina Culture Center – Salon Del Pueblo. Calles Mariscal Sucre and Benigno Malo.
The Carmen of the Assumption Convent formed part of this building for almost three centuries. In 1971 the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception decided to relinquish the corner section of the urban block they occupied and sold it to the Ecuadorean Culture Center. The new project was designed by the architect Patricio Muñoz Vega and included the restoration of the old building and the construction of a new building for commercial use.
Thick windowless adobe walls surround the interior space containing a beautiful long narrow courtyard. Located at the rear is a stone-carved fountain and a wall with sixty niches dedicated to colonial saints, the tiny statues of which were commissioned by the Culture Center in 1972.
The space is used as a gallery for art exhibitions.
The windows are framed by semicircular arches, while the corner is distinguished by a continuous wooden balcony in the traditional Lima Style.
A GUIDE TO CUENCA ARCHITECTURE 