F - Provence - The picturesque village of Moustier

The Sénanque Abbey, cosily located in a little valley near Gordes (Vaucluse, F), is one of the most beautiful examples of Cistercian architecture. It is still home to a small community of monks, who grow mainly lavender and lavandin.

The Indian child between two cultures. A church in the village of Hagwilget, near Hazelton, is a symbol of the white world.

The legends are only available in German, French or Spanish
L'église coloniale et le hameau de Tiobamba, dans le département du Cuzco. Au fond du Nevado Chicón, 5530m - 1969

The legends are only available in German, French or Spanish
L'architecture coloniale d'Arequipa fait emploi d'une pierre blanchâtre très facile à travailler. Les monuments religieux sont couverts d'éléments décoratifs exécutés avec un talent remarquable.

The legends are only available in German, French or Spanish
En ce jour de fête champêtre sur le haut plateau de Puno, des Ilameros exécutent la très ancienne «danse du Lama», le solennel et dédaigneux camélidé exclusif des Andes, devant la toute simple église de San Juan de Chuquibambilla.

The colonial church of Tiobamba in the department of Cusco. In the background the Nevado Chicón, 5530m, from the Cordillera Urubamba. - 1969

Cuzco, the sacred "navel" of the Tahuantinsuyo Empire, is today the archaeological capital of South America: Inca, colonial and republican at the same time. In front of the Plaza de Armas, the ancient ceremonial Huacaypata, rises the Cathedral of Cuzco. - 1969

Cuzco, the sacred "navel" of the Tahuantinsuyo Empire, is today the archaeological capital of South America: Inca, colonial and republican at the same time. In front of the Plaza de Armas, the old ceremonial Huacaypata, stands the baroque church of La Compañía de Jesús where the Amarucancha de Huayna Capac once stood. - 1969

The village of Juli on the southwest bank of Lake Titicaca was a religious center during the colonial period. This is reminiscent of a number of churches, the rich interior of which testifies to the past glory. Here the Santa Cruz church, on whose esplanade the students play a game of Fulbito. - 1969

The village of Juli on the southwest bank of Lake Titicaca was a religious center during the colonial period. This is reminiscent of a number of churches, the rich interior of which testifies to the past glory. Here is an imposing portal in front of the Santa Cruz Church, over whose esplanade two boys lead their pigs. - 1969

Entrance to the Church of l’Asunción in the village of Juli on the southwest bank of Lake Titicaca, which was a religious center during the colonial period. - 1969

The church of Andahuaylillas, a town of about 3,900 inhabitants near Cuzco. It contains many colonial treasures, which is why it is often called in Peru the "Sistine Chapel of the Andes" in an effort to compete with the Old Continent. - 1969

The front side with the portal of the colonial church of San Pedro of Zepita on Lake Titicaca. - 1976

For Argentines, Patagonia is a remote and wild world where the most diverse legends circulate. In his work “The Children of Captain Grant”, Jules Verne has given us a description of this mysterious country that excites our imagination. The Río Negro marks the natural border between the provinces of Buenos Aires and Río Negro. In the background of the photo, we can see the silhouette of the church of Carmen de Patagones, an important place of the colonization of the country. During the 19th century, immigrants used the rivers that cross Patagonia in order to penetrate the interior of the country. - 1973

The church in the village of Humahuaca (province of Jujuy) is of colonial type. It is an ancient place, already frequented in pre-Columbian times, as evidenced by the partially restored ruins of Tilcara. - 1973

Small church near San Fernando in the Catamarca valley. - 1973

Bells of a small church near San Fernando in the Catamarca Valley. - 1973

The city of Salta was founded by the Spanish in 1582. It lies at an altitude of 1187 m above sea level. The Church of San Francisco shows Spanish colonial style. - 1973

In the 17th century, the Jesuits settled in the province of Misiones and founded reservations for the Indians. The portal of the crumbling church of San Ignacio Mini dates from that time. - 1973

The church and a street of the old colonial quarter of the small town of Pespire in Honduras, not far from the Pan-American Highway. This picture clearly shows the charm that many peasant settlements in this republic of Central America still exude today. - 1977

A picturesque street in the village of Cojutepeque in the department of Cuscatlán in El Salvador. - 1977

The church of Nuestra Señora de la Guadalupe stands in the heart of San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador. A man, followed by his dog, enters the sanctuary. We know the great importance of the Virgin of Guadalupe, patron saint of Mexico and indeed of the whole of Latin America, for the inhabitants of that continent. This prestige has lasted since the first years of the conquest of the region by the Spaniards. The image of the venerated Virgin is carried in procession at certain times of the year. - 1977

Guatemala's capital, like other Central American cities, offers the traveller many contrasts. The poorest neighbourhoods stand next to modern buildings or churches, most of which date back to the colonial era. In the old quarters, traffic is heavy and sometimes problematic due to the narrowness of the streets. Bus lines are used by the inhabitants to get to any part of the city. Other lines provide connections to the most remote parts of the country. - 1977

What remains of one of the most beautiful churches in La Antigua, Guatemala, a victim like so many others of the earthquakes that devastated the country. - 1977

A beautiful church stands in the main square of the village of Salamá, Guatemala. The splendour of colonial art is underlined here by the purity and extreme sobriety of the architectural lines. - 1977

La Antigua is located at the foot of the Agua volcano, which can be seen in the background. There are only a few remains of Guatemala's first capital, Ciudad Vieja. Here, the church of the Pedro de Bethancourt Hospital on Las Campanas Street. - 1977

The Basilica of Esquipulas in the department of Chiquimula in Guatemala houses the Black Christ of Esquipulas, an image of the crucified Jesus venerated by millions of believers in Central America. - 1977

Iglesia del Espíritu Santo of Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. The first church was built in 1532 by order of Bishop Francisco Marroquín. Only the façade of the Baroque church remains, as the old church was demolished in 1899 to make way for a larger one, the construction of which took up much of the twentieth century. - 1972

Chichicastenango was an important religious and political centre of the Quiché Indians. The Spanish conquistadors destroyed the old Maya temple and built the church of Santo Tomás on its base (picture). To this day, however, the church is also used by Mayan shamans and healers (curanderos) who light incense and candles on the floor, blow liquor over it and make offerings of flowers. The 18 steps of the staircase, which may still be from the old Mayan temple, correspond to the months of the Mayan calendar. - 1977

Chichicastenango was an important religious and political centre of the Quiché Indians. The Spanish conquistadors destroyed the old Maya temple and built the church of Santo Tomás on its base (picture). To this day, however, the church is also used by Mayan shamans and healers (curanderos) who light incense and candles on the floor, blow liquor over it and make offerings of flowers. - 1972

The Church of the Calvary in Chichicastenango occupies the other end of a large square dominated by the temple erected to Santo Tomas. Twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays, a market is held in this square, attended by thousands of Indians from the region. This feria has become a real tourist attraction. The staircase of the Church of Calvary, like that of the temple of Santo Tomás, is a place of offerings where the natives like to gather. They burn pieces of copal and recite prayers to their gods. - 1977

A Mayan Quiché woman on the steps of the Church of the Calvary. She burns pieces of copal and prays to her gods. - 1977

The votive offerings are placed on the steps of the Church of the Calvary. They burn pieces of copal and pray to their gods. - 1977

A Mayan Quiché woman on the steps of the Church of the Calvary. She prays to her gods. - 1977

Side entrance to Christ Church in Malacca, Malaysia. The city was once known as the ‘world's largest port’. Completed in 1753, the church is a beautiful example of Dutch sacred architecture and was inaugurated to mark the centenary of the colonisation of the country. Above the altar is a magnificent Last Supper frieze made of colourful glazed tiles. The roof beams were each made from a single tree trunk. Founded in 1403 by Parameswara, the prince of Sumatra, the city of Malacca is located at a river mouth that forms a safe harbour. In 1511, the Portuguese conquered the city and made it an important stop on the spice route. In 1641, they were driven out by the Dutch, who now controlled the entire region. The last colonists to arrive were the English, who completed their conquest of the Malay Peninsula in 1824. – 1990

The picture shows a street scene in Colombo, on Wolfendhal Street in Pettah in 1990. The façade of the damaged Abdeen building can be seen. On the ground floor are small shops such as Lanka Stores. A typical tuk-tuk can be seen on the street. Next to the shops is the Christian St. Paul's Chapel.

Relief on the Wolvendaal Church in Colombo, Sri Lanka, which is an important historical landmark from the Dutch colonial period (built 1749-1757). It is located in the Pettah district and is one of the best-preserved Dutch Reformation buildings in the region, known for its architecture and surrounding neighbourhood. This is the coat of arms of the van Rhee family, which is found on one of the gravestones or epitaphs inside the church. It belongs to Thomas van Rhee, who was the Dutch governor of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) from 1692 to 1697. – Photo 1990

The photograph shows historic tiles (glazed ceramic tiles) of the kind typically found in the ruins of St Augustine’s Church in Old Goa, India. These tiles feature characteristic motifs in shades of blue, yellow and ochre, bearing witness to the Portuguese influence in this region during the 17th century. The tiles are located on the remains of St Augustine’s Church, which was built around 1602. The photograph shows the tiles in a weathered state on a dark, moss-covered wall, which is typical of the ruins in the humid environment of Goa. – 1990

The Sé Cathedral of Santa Catarina, known as the Sé Cathedral, in Old Goa (Goa Velha), India. The cathedral was built between 1562 and around 1651 in the Tuscan style and is laid out in the shape of a Latin cross with three naves. It originally had two towers, but the northern bell tower collapsed in 1776 and was never rebuilt, giving the façade its current asymmetrical appearance. Its tower houses the famous ‘Golden Bell’, considered one of the largest bells in the world. Today, the cathedral forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ‘Churches and Monasteries of Goa’. - The tree in front of the church is a columnar araucaria. A fascinating characteristic of this species is that, outside its native habitat (New Caledonia), it almost always exhibits a distinctive tilt, which is genetically determined to lean towards the equator. – 1990

The Basílica do Bom Jesus (Basilica of the Good Jesus) in Velha Goa (Old Goa). It is India’s first Basilica minor and is regarded as one of the most significant examples of Portuguese Baroque architecture in India. The foundation stone was laid in 1594, and the building was completed in 1605. The façade is made of granite and combines Corinthian, Doric and Ionic elements. Unlike many other churches in Goa, the exterior walls are not plastered, giving it its characteristic appearance of dark laterite stone. The church is world-famous as the resting place of Saint Francis Xavier. His remains lie in an ornate tomb inside. In 1986, the basilica was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. – 1990

The Saraguros are known for their elegant and traditional black national dress. The women often wear distinctive white hats with black patterns on the brim (or black felt hats), dark shawls (reboso), colourful embroidered blouses and elaborate beaded jewellery (collares). The photograph shows a traditional gathering after Sunday mass, held directly in front of the church in the main town of Saraguro in southern Ecuador (Loja Province). Those present are carrying floral arrangements and wreaths, which is typical of religious or community celebrations within the context of syncretism (the fusion of the Christian faith and the Andean cosmovision). – Ecuador – 1977

Saraguro in the province of Loja, Ecuador. A particularly beautiful custom of the Saraguros is the flower offerings: every year, during the Christmas midnight mass, the ‘muñidoras’ are chosen. These women are then responsible for the flower offerings throughout the year. Using garden flowers, they create small arrangements in which tiny figurines, crosses and stars are hidden, and place these in the various churches every Sunday morning. Unmarried women arrange the flowers in specific round shapes; only elderly women or widows are permitted to create arrangements in the shape of branches. - Book: Picture 39 - Ecuador - 1976

Saraguro in the province of Loja, Ecuador. A particularly beautiful custom of the Saraguros is the offering of flowers: every year, during the Christmas Midnight Mass, the ‘muñidoras’ are chosen. These women are then responsible for the floral offerings throughout the year. Using garden flowers, they create small arrangements in which tiny figurines, crosses and stars are hidden, and place these in the various churches every Sunday morning. Unmarried women arrange the flowers into specific circular shapes; only elderly women or widows are permitted to create branch-shaped arrangements. - Book: Picture 36 - Ecuador - 1976

The indigenous potters have never used a potter’s wheel, but they produce very beautiful functional and decorative items, which can be bought at one or other of the local markets in the Cordillera. – Quinua, near Ayacucho. – 1969

The Santa Catalina Convent in Arequipa is a cloistered complex founded in 1579, laid out like a small colonial-era town. The buildings and arcades were largely constructed from white, porous volcanic stone (sillar), which is characteristic of Arequipa’s historic city centre. The deep ochre and orange tones of the walls in the cloisters form a striking contrast to the light-coloured stone buildings and the blue sky. The walled complex contains labyrinthine alleyways, squares, the nuns’ living quarters and beautiful courtyards. Peru – 1976

The Monastery of Santa Catalina (Monasterio de Santa Catalina de Siena) in Arequipa is a sprawling cloistered complex founded in 1579, which resembles a colourful citadel or a ‘city within a city’. The complex captivates visitors with its walls painted in vibrant blue and deep red, narrow alleyways (such as Calle Sevilla, visible here) and courtyards made of volcanic sillar stone. For almost four centuries, nuns lived here in complete seclusion from the outside world before the historic part was opened to the public as a museum in 1970. The convent is regarded as one of Peru’s most significant colonial buildings and forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the historic city centre of Arequipa. – 1976

A picturesque alleyway with white archways and red flowers at the famous Monasterio de Santa Catalina (Monastery of St Catherine) in Arequipa. The complex consists of buildings made of sillar (volcanic tuff) painted in bright white and deep red. Founded in the 16th century, this cloistered convent resembles a small, self-contained town within the city of Arequipa. Its narrow alleyways, courtyards and flower beds make it one of Peru’s most important sights. – 1976

A traditional Andean farm in a barren Puna landscape at an altitude of over 4,000 metres, on the road between Puquio and Chalhuanca. The stone walls are used to keep alpacas and llamas together overnight and to protect them from predators and the wind. The small stone structures with conical roofs made of local ichu grass serve as temporary accommodation or camps for the herders during the grazing season. – Peru – 1972

Cuzco, the sacred "navel" of the Tahuantinsuyo Empire, is today the archaeological capital of South America: Inca, colonial and republican at the same time. In front of the Plaza de Armas, the old ceremonial Huacaypata, stands the baroque church of La Compañía de Jesús where the Amarucancha de Huayna Capac once stood. - 1969

The inner courtyard of the Santo Domingo Monastery in Cusco, Peru, showcases the harmonious blend of Spanish colonial architecture and the exposed walls of the ancient Inca sun temple, Qorikancha, lying beneath it. The Christian Dominican monastery was built in the 16th century directly on the foundations and walls of the Inca Empire’s most important religious centre. The precisely fitted Inca stones, laid without mortar, form the foundation for the arcades of the Spanish colonial period. In the background rises the Baroque tower of the Church of Santo Domingo, which forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the historic centre of Cusco. – Peru – 1976

Indigenous people in the small church at Ollantaytambo in the Urubamba Valley, above Machu Picchu, in the Department of Cuzco. Under the zealous Spanish missionaries, the indigenous people were very quickly converted to Catholicism; yet, on closer inspection, the old customs and deities can still be found beneath the European veneer in all the rites. For example, St James, the patron saint of the Spaniards, is celebrated with great fervour on 25 July, yet at the same time this day marks the festival of the mountain god Taita Wamani, and Pachamama, the Mother Earth from pre-Inca times, is today identified in many places with the Virgin Mary. - Book: Picture 108 - Peru - 1969

The colonial church of Tiobamba in the department of Cusco. In the background the Nevado Chicón, 5530m, from the Cordillera Urubamba. - 1969

The nave of the church in Andahuaylillas, a small town with a population of around 3,900 near Cuzco. Built at the end of the 16th century on the foundations of an Inca palace, the church contains many colonial treasures, which is why it is often referred to in Peru – in an effort to rival the Old Continent – as the ‘Sistine Chapel of the Andes’. - Book: Picture 133 - Peru - 1976

The church of San Juan de Chuquibambilla near Ayaviri, in the department of Puno, at an altitude of approximately 3,900 metres. - Book: Picture 95 - Peru - 1976

The village of Juli on the southwest bank of Lake Titicaca was a religious center during the colonial period. This is reminiscent of a number of churches, the rich interior of which testifies to the past glory. Here is an imposing portal in front of the Santa Cruz Church, over whose esplanade two boys lead their pigs. - 1969

On the way from La Paz to the Takesi Inca Trail, you pass this historic cemetery chapel with its distinctive, slightly leaning adobe bell tower and the small, chapel-like burial structures in front of it. – Bolivia – 1976

The old Church of Santa Ana in Chipaya was built of adobe (air-dried mud bricks) and had a fragile thatched roof (paja). The photograph shows the roof being repaired (1976). Due to the extreme weather conditions in the highlands (strong winds, sandstorms and seasonal flooding from the River Lauca), the unprotected mud walls of the old structure crumbled over the decades after the roof was damaged. Rather than undertaking a costly restoration of the old, dilapidated adobe church, a new, modern church building was erected in the village centre. The historic, free-standing bell tower from the colonial era, which was deliberately built in isolation and completely separate from the main building, remained standing untouched as an important landmark and ritual focal point for the village community. – Chipaya (Oruro Department) – Bolivia – 1976

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