Description of the attraction
The former Piazza San Francisco, which was renamed the Piazza Simon Bolivar in 1883, is home to one of the most beautiful churches in Panama, dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi. The temple is located on the waterfront, next to the building of the Panama Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, across the street from the National Theater. The bell tower of the church rises above all the surrounding buildings and is visible from afar.
The Church of St. Francis was built of stone in the 17th century. Local artisans, under the supervision of Franciscan monks, made 8 Baroque altars from larch wood. The elegant high altar is made up of over 400 brightly colored wooden pieces and is an original example of colonial art.
Like many other buildings in the neighborhood, it was twice damaged by fire: in 1737 and 1756. After the monks were expelled from the city, the church was closed for some time next to the deserted monastery. Its reconstruction was started in 1918. The restorers redesigned the facades and gave the temple the look we see now. Another renovation took place at the end of the 20th century. Today the church of St. Francis is decorated in a neo-Romanesque style. The interior decoration of the temple is rather modest: the walls are decorated with rare paintings, there are practically no gilded elements. Local residents did not have the funds for expensive temple décor: there are no gold deposits in their country. Columbus, who landed on the coast of Panama, met a huge caravan of gold and reported to Spain that there were gold deposits here. The Spaniards searched for him for a long time. Not found. And the met caravan was simply transported by one Indian tribe to another.
