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Location:
Cusco
Date: December 24
The
origin of this fair dates back to the Vice-regency, and
today has become one of the largest arts and crafts fairs
in Peru. It is held in the main square of Cusco, where artisans
lay out blankets on the sidewalks, as is the custom in traditional
Andean fairs.
Santuranticuy, which means "saints for sale",
is a provisional market where image carvers and artisans
sell a wide variety of figurines to liven up Christmas and
fit out the Nativity scenes that are set up in homes and
parish churches.
The fair also sells a variety of ceramic objects brought
from Pucará and Quinua. Here one can find all sorts
of arts and crafts, such as wooden carvings, pottery and
the boxed scenes called retablos.
At night, street vendors sell a traditional hot and sweet
rum punch called ponche, to warm up chilly visitors.
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