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Plazuela del Carmen is a small grassy square in Villa de Leyva. Besides being a nice place to sit on the grass, it contains two important buildings.
Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
The first building is the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Carmen). This beautiful church was built in 1850. Unfortunately, it was closed when we walked by, but it’s a very photogenic structure.
Carmelite Museum
Across the square is the Carmelite Museum (Museo del Carmen). This religious art museum is considered one of the best in Colombia. It was founded in 1971 by Padre Rafael Mejía Maya. Admission is COP$7,000 per person (as of April 2023).
The museum contains five different rooms with over 400 works of religious art. They were collected from different Carmelite convents and monasteries from all over Colombia. The works date from the 17th century until the first quarter of the 20th century. Most of the art was made by anonymous artists and some has European origins.
The museum also contains the Café del Museo, where you can have a coffee in the courtyard. In the center of the courtyard is an interesting moss-covered fountain.
