PLAZA CONSTITUCIÓN

The Plaza de la Constitución in Huancayo (Peru) is one of the two main squares of this city together with the Plaza Huamanmarca. In 1544, the Dominicans had built a monastery there, now razed. Previously it was called Plaza del Comercio or Plaza Nueva, but its name was changed after the Huancaíno people took the oath of the "Liberal Constitution of Cadiz" in 1813. Nowadays, it continues to be the commercial centre of the city, surrounded by different commercial establishments, including restaurants and hotels. In 1813, the main square of the city of Huancayo was Huamanmarca, where the first temple built after the foundation in 1572 was located. The current cathedral in Plaza Constitución, began construction in 1799 and was not completed until 1810. Apart from its façade, it is of little interest. To the northeast are the Nuestra Señora del Valle Theater, the local archdiocese of Huancayo, and the Hotel Tívoli building. On the southeast side is a shopping mall built in a building that was declared Cultural Patrimony of the Nation in 1988. The House of the poet Juan Parra del Riego and the House where the abolition of slavery was decreed in 1854 are also located here. The premises of the former Industrial Bank, which is now the Casa del Artesano shopping centre, is an interesting place to get a glimpse of the local handicraft production, but less specialized than what you can find in the market on Sundays.