San Francisco Square

Stretching 136 meters (446 feet) from end to end, San Francisco Square once formed part of Cusco’s Inca ceremonial heart. That changed in 1572, when Viceroy Francisco de Toledo decided to establish religious orders here. The square took its name from the Franciscan friars and went on to become the second most important public space in the colonial city.

Take a moment to look around. At the corner of Granada and Tordo streets, you’ll find the Casa de Clorinda Matto de Turner. In 1889, the author published Birds Without a Nest here, the very first novel to denounce violence against Indigenous communities.

The reaction was explosive: a major scandal, immediate excommunication, and copies of her books burned in public. Charming times, weren’t they? Now turn toward the imposing San Francisco Church and Convent.

Rebuilt after the earthquake of 1650, it hides two remarkable treasures. For the first, you’ll need to look up. Painted in 1699, this enormous family tree of the Franciscan Order measures 12 meters (39 feet) high and 9 meters (30 feet) wide, and contains more than 680 figures—making it one of the largest paintings in Latin America.

The second treasure requires you to look down instead. Beneath the church lie impressive underground catacombs filled with centuries of human remains. They aren’t open to visitors, but you can still walk around the church’s beautiful cloister.