Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala

Antigua Guatemala, located 45 km from Guatemala City, reveals to present-day visitors a dramatic history of conquest, grandeur, destruction and rebirth.

It was actually the third capital of the “New World”, founded by the Spanish in 1543, and named “Ciudad de Santiago de Los Caballeros de Guatemala” in 1566.

Although she was battered by volcanic eruptions and the resulting seismic tremors for two hundred years, Antigua remained the seat of power in Central America until 1773.  The Santa Marta Earthquake of that year leveled homes and crumbled great cathedrals and monasteries to the point that the capital was moved to the Guatemala City in the Ermita Valley.

Gradually, the settlers returned to Antigua to resurrect this jewel of modern and colonial urban architecture.  Though vibrant and modern as a premier tourist destination, she maintains the characteristics of a magnificent colonial city stopped in time.

For its immense historical and cultural value, La Antigua Guatemala was designed by UNESCO “World Heritage Site” in 1979.

Typical of Spanish colonial city planning, the Plaza Mayor, or Central Park, is located at the heart of the city with cobblestone streets and avenues radiating out as a grid, eight blocks square.

The stunning artistic soul of the park is the Las Sirenas (The Mermaids) fountain, surrounded by meandering walkways through lush gardens and ornate wrought iron benches, streetlights and flowerbed borders.  The fountain was designed and built in 1739 by Diego de Porres, at the request of the Count of Gomorra.  With the beautifully sculpted mermaids holding hands to their breasts, the fountain symbolizes nutrition and growth following a period of drought and hunger.