Location:
Cusco
Date: June (Movable feast)
The
festival of Corpus Christi has been celebrated all over
Peru since colonial times, but reaches a high point in Cuzco.
Fifteen saints and virgins from various districts are borne
in a procession to the Cathedral where they "greet"
the body of Christ embodied in the Sacred Host, kept in
a fabulous gold goblet weighing 26 kilos and standing 1.2
meters high.
Sixty
days after Easter Sunday, the members of each nearby church
bear their patron saint in a procession to the chimes of
the María Angola, Peru's largest church bell, forged
in a copper-gold alloy in the sixteenth century by local
artisan Diego Arias de Cerda.
At
night everyone gathers together, for an overnight vigil,
where typical dishes such as chiriuchu (spicy guinea pig),
beer, chicha and cornbread are served.
At
dawn the procession sets off around the main square, bearing
the images of five virgins clad in richly embroidered tunics,
plus the images of four saints: Sebastian, Blas, Joseph
and the Apostle Santiago (Saint James) mounted on a beautiful
white horse.
Then
the saints enter the Cathedral to receive homage, time after
which representatives and authorities from various communities
of Cuzco meet in the main square to discuss local affairs.
Finally, the delegations return to the churches amidst hymns
and prayers.
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