Holy Week in Popayán
| Holy Week processions in Popayán | |
|---|---|
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| Country | Colombia |
| Reference | 00259 |
| Region | Latin America and the Caribbean |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 2009 |
| List | Representative |
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The Holy Week in Popayán, Cauca (Colombia), is the celebration of the Passion and death of Jesus Christ through daily processions continuously performed since the sixteenth century between Good Friday nights and Holy Saturday. This parade takes place in the ancient streets of the "White City". Religious images of Spanish, Andalusian, Quito, Italian and Payanes arranged on a wooden platform with 4 front and 4 back "barrotes" (bars) are carried in the shoulders of the "Cargueros". These images are representations of different episodes recounted in the Gospels on the Passion, Crucifixion and Death of Jesus Christ. Each performance is a "paso" (step). The steps are taken through the streets, a distance of a cross-shaped layout since the time of the Conquest, passing by the main churches and temples of the city.
On September 30, 2009 it was declared a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by the UNESCO committee.
From the time of the conquest, Popayán has the first information about processions made by the King entrusted those carrying large crosses and in the form of penance and mourning whipped through the principal streets of the parade behind the sacrum was performed. In 1558 Philip II signed the royal charters authorizing the processions in Popayán. With the advance of the time the parade grew and became very important, as was the case that by the early seventeenth century, an edict was issued by the authorities demanded the beautification of the balconies and the houses where the procession pass. The chronicler José María Vergara y Vergara in one of his writings from 1859 described the weeks of Popayán as a solemn and important to the people every year payanés received him with fervor and faith.
The processions were acquired great importance and size over the years since it was increasing the number of images and ornaments that were enriched, this was thanks to economic and social development through the city during the Spanish period because Popayan became the political and economic center of the colony settled here since colonial institutions as the Royal Mint of Spain. Mining development in the Governorate of Popayán that processions will help great contribution in gold jewelry, silver and emeralds that embellished the images with crowns and jewels, the seats and litter. Mining was powered by Indian slave labor. Slaves had a life expectancy of three years. It was said one could never lose one´s way to the mines of Popayán because the roads were lined with bones of dead Indians. Hanke, Louis. Las Casas and the Spanish Struggle for Justice in the New World. Most of the development of the procession was in the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth Española.La colonial period most of the images are of Spanish origin and Quito as they were the most prominent art schools of the time, the gold in is mostly payanesa.
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