Plaza de Mayo: Catedral Metropolitana, Buenos Aires

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Catedral Metropolitana is a Catholic cathedral was finished in 1862. Inside the cathedral visitor will find the guarded mausoleum of Argentinean General Jose de San Martin. He was the liberator of Argentina from Spanish rule. He is the hero of Argentina. There are European artist paintings and sculptures from 18th century. The interior is of Baroque design. On the outside stood several of what I think similar to Corinthian columns.

Mon-Frid: 8am – 7pm
Sat: 9am - 12.30pm and 5pm – 7.30pm
Sun: 9am – 2pm and 4pm – 7.30pm

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The cathedral on Plaza Mayo is one of the nicest and most important buildings in the city. From the outside it doesn´t resemble a cathedral, certainly not a European style one in any case, but inside it's ornately decorated and is a nice place to escape the noise and crowds on the plaza.

It´s one of the many important buildings on Buenos Aires' main square and contains the tomb of perhaps Argentina's most celebrated historical figure, General San Martin, who helped liberate much of South America from Spanish rule. His tomb is guarded by two soldiers and is the main monument of interest in the church. The tombs of other notable Argentines are also found in the cathedral, as well as some impressive religious paintings.

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Spanish Colonial architecture at one end, French-Italian at the other - the building on Plaza de Mayo are nothing is not eclectic so the Cathedral Metropolitana looking for all the world like a Greek temple should come as no great surprise. The facade - all Corinthian columns and neoclassical pediment - far more restrained than most of the city's churches - is the result of major rebuilding in the 19th century. I'm sure when building commenced in the 16th century, it didn't look anything like it does today.

Whilst it is far more typically Spanish inside, with gilded columns and silver altars, the temple-like appearance is a fitting enough setting for the mausoleum that houses the tomb of the country's most revered hero, Jose de San Martin, who led the army of liberation where his black sarcophagus sits on a high plinth, swathed in an enormous national flag and guarded by ceremonially-garbed sentries and life-sized marble statues - it's all very grand. In actual fact, although it's accessed from inside the cathedral, the mausoleum lies outside the consecrated space of the building - San Martin's Freemason precluded him from burial within a Catholic church.

The mausoleum sentries are dressed in the uniforms of San Martin's army. Across the other side of the Plaza, the building on the south-west corner is also guarded by soldiers in period uniforms. These are different - they look more 18th than 19th century for a start. No-one we asked could tell us who they were or what building they were guarding - I wonder if someone on VT can tell me. We caught their Changing of the Guard. Between them, the sentries at San Martin's tomb and the sentries guarding the Casa Rosada, you've got a pretty good chance of catching one or other of the ceremonies when you visit the Plaza.

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The Catedral Metropolitana de Buenos Aires overlook Plaza de Mayo square and it didn’t look like a cathedral to me the first time I saw the greek style columns outside :) The cathedral was full of people when I got inside, not locals but some noisy tourists with cameras etc I felt I was inside a non organized museum…

It’s the main church in the capital and its origins go back to the 16th century when in 1580 the first building was built here and it was rebuilt many times since then (many times from the beginning because many parts of the church collapsed!)

The interior is more interesting for me with strange decoration (a combination of baroque and renaissance styles) and I spend some time looking the sculptures and the paintings (many frescoes all over the walls and the ceiling).

In the cathedral you can find also the Mausoleum of San Martin, the famous general. it’s open daily from 8:00am (weekends 9:00)
tours in spanish from Monday to Friday at 11:30am

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This 19th Century cathedral with its neoclassical architecture is situated by the Plaza de Mayo. Inside the church has the Venetian interior features and the main attractions is San Martin's mausoleum which is permenantly guarded.

I was looking around for the Cathedral and just couldn't find anything that looked like a Cathedral, no giant dome, no large belltower, no rousing spires. The Catedral Metropolitana looks more like a museum or a bank from the front, so you really don't know what to expect. The Spanish colonial style, that would have been perfectly fitting in their neighborhood its in, was cast aside in one of the many renovations to the present temple. Somehow they chose a neo-Classical facade.

Once you go inside the Cathedral is more ornate than you might expect, though still considerably less than the usual I would say.

One of the side chapels holds the remains of General Jose de San Martin, the leader of the fight for Independence from Spain. He is considered one of the fathers of South American independence and is special to the histories of Argentina, Peru and Chile. Somehow, General San Martin soured on the revolution and retired in Paris, from whence his bones were returned to Argentina in 1880.

Interestingly, like many of the leaders of the independence movements of North and South America, San Martin was a Freemason.

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The Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral is located in the city centre, overlooking Plaza de Mayo, on the corner of San Martín and Rivadavia streets, in the San Nicolás neighbourhood. It is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires. (Catholic Religion)

The Cathedral of Buenos Aires was rebuilt several times since its humble origins in the 16th century. The present building is a mix of architectural styles, with a 18th century nave and dome and a severe, 19th century Neoclassical façade without towers. The interior keeps precious 18th century statues and altarpieces, as well as abundant Neo-Renaissance and Neo-Baroque decoration.

In 1880, the remains of General José de San Martín were brought from France and placed in a mausoleum, The black sarcophagh is guarded by three life-size female figures that represent Argentina, Chile and Peru, three of the regions freed by the General. The mausoleum also has the remains of Generals Juan Gregorio de las Heras and Tomás Guido, as well as those of the Unknown Soldier of the Independence.

We roamed in not even realizing it was a church .It looked more like a museum with it's huge pillars in front. The church is a treasure house of art and monuments tombs to past priests and dignitaries. One of the most impressive tombs is of the revered historical hero Jose de San Martin.

In 1692, construction of the first cathedral was carried out on this same plot. In 1822 , the current building was finished, after a century and a half of several architectural works. This is a neoclassical building, with Greek influences, atypical for a church. The facade was made in 1822 by Próspero Catelin and Pierre Benoit, inspired in the Palais Bourbon in Paris. Though the exterior looks more like a Greek temple than a church, its interior is like a colonial Spanish church. Inside the cathedral, you can observe pictures and sculptures, mainly made by Italian artists.
You may access the mausoleum where General Jose de San Martin remains are. He has been a hero of our independence.

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While on a tour with a cruise, we visited the Plaza De Mayo and then strolled over to the Cathedral. We always find it a quiet place for taking a break from the crowds. From the viewpoint of a photographer, this is a hard church to make pictures of. It is close to the street and dark inside. Resist the urge to use a flash. Shoot at a lower speed and aperature and with a high ISO and the pictures will be fine and worshippers will not be adversely affected. Note: do not photograph during mass.