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Chiquinquirá is a city in the department of Boyacá, Colombia, and an important place for religious pilgrims.
Introduction to Chiquinquirá
Chiquinquirá was originally inhabited by the Muisca people. The name translates to Place of Swamps Covered with Fog in the Chibcha language. The modern town was founded on September 4, 1586.
Located just an hour from Villa de Leyva and three hours from Bogotá, Chiquinquirá attracts Catholic pilgrims going to see the original painting of the Virgin of Chiquinquirá (Virgen de Chiquinquirá), the patron saint of Colombia.
We drove in from Villa de Leyva and spent about two hours in Chiquinquirá. It’s not a knockout destination by any means, but if you’re into religious artifacts and churches, it’s worth a day trip. Everything worth seeing is situated around three plazas in town.
Plaza de Bolívar
The important area in Chiquinquirá is Plaza de Bolívar, with a statue of Simón Bolívar (1783-1830) in the center. It’s a wide open space surrounded by colonial buildings. Many of them are souvenir shops selling religious items and guitars. You can also find small booths selling religious items in the middle of the plaza.
Basilica of the Virgin of Chiquinquirá
The centerpiece of Chiquinquirá is the Basilica of the Virgin of Chiquinquirá (Basílica de la Virgen de Chiquinquirá), which attracts thousands of pilgrims to the city annually. It’s a large Neoclassical church built between 1796 and 1812 and is one of the more beautiful churches in Colombia.
The basilica covers an area of 2,800 square meters and is in the shape of a Roman cross. It features a central nave flanked by aisles on each side.
Other features are 15 chapels, a wide ambulatory with statues of the Stations of the Cross, and a plaque commemorating the visit of Pope John Paul II. On July 3, 1986, he knelt in front of the Virgin of Chiquinquirá and prayed for peace in Colombia.
Virgin of Chiquinquirá
The Virgin of Chiquinquirá is an image of the Virgin Mary and the reason the basilica was built. It measures 113 x 126 centimeters and is displayed behind protective glass in a shrine behind the altar.
The Virgin of Chiquinquirá was painted in Tunja around 1555 by Spanish artist Alonso de Narváez (d. 1583). He used a canvas of cotton spun by local indigenous people, and paint made from mineral and organic pigments from the soil along with herb and flower juices. The painting was kept in a chapel with a leaky roof, and after some time, humidity had damaged it so much that it was impossible to recognize the subject.
In 1577, the painting was moved to Chiquinquirá and placed in storage in a former oratory. In 1585, a woman named María Ramos from Sevilla, Spain, moved the image to a small chapel in town. According to tradition, a year later on December 26, 1586, the painting was discovered to have been miraculously restored. The scratches in the cloth disappeared and the paint recovered its original brightness and color.
Coronation Museum
Next to the basilica is the Coronation Museum (Museo de la Coronación). It displays religious art and artifacts from the Colonial period and is housed in a former Dominican convent. The museum is temporarily closed for restoration (as of November 2024). From the courtyard, you can get another look at the basilica.
Parque Julio Flórez
Parque Julio Flórez is a few blocks from Plaza de Bolívar. It’s a smaller square with a few shrubs. In the center is a bust of Julio Flórez (1867-1923), a poet born in the city.
Church of the Renovation
The Church of the Renovation (Iglesia de la Renovación), officially Our Lady of the Rosary (Nuestra Señora del Rosario), is located on the plaza along with the attached Mariano Museum (Museo Mariano). The church was the site of the miracle of the renovation of the Virgin of Chiquinquirá. We didn’t visit the small religious art museum, but we did enter the church.
Underneath the church is the Well of the Virgin (Pozo de la Virgen). Visitors can follow the path to the spot where the miracle supposedly took place. The well of holy water that is currently there is the result of pilgrims taking dirt from the spot over a few centuries.
Parque David Guarín
The third and final plaza to visit is Parque David Guarín. It’s a large space with grass and trees, playground equipment, and the modern Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Catedral Sagrado Corazón de Jesús).
Chiquinquirá Railway Station
More interesting is the Chiquinquirá Railway Station (Estación de Chiquinquirá). Construction started in 1926 and it opened on October 12, 1928. It operated until 1975. Today, the building is a cultural center. It features an old locomotive on original tracks behind the building.
Inside, there are periodic art exhibitions. When we visited, there was a photo exhibition on the ground floor. On the second floor, there were indigenous antiquities from all over Colombia as well as old photos of the city along the walls. Finally, on the third floor there’s a conference room.
