Maras: History, Craftsmanship, and Andean Landscapes
Accommodation in Maras
Maras reveals itself through its historic doorways, the Church of San Francisco de AsĂs, and crafts made in the town. Andean agriculture also shapes the town’s cultural associations. For your trip planning, this offers a combination of architectural history and craft traditions in the town, alongside archaeological and productive landscapes nearby. Each destination has a different focus: in Maras, inscriptions, façades, and textiles take center stage; at Moray, the circular terraces; and at the salt mines, the tiered salt ponds.
Historic Buildings and Doorways
The Church of San Francisco de AsĂs was built around 1556 and has a Renaissance-style façade. Its construction dates to the founding of the Villa San Francisco de AsĂs de Maras in 1556. The church can therefore be viewed both as a building in its own right and in the context of the town’s founding history.
The historic doorways can also be seen on a walk through the town’s narrow streets. The Portada de Marco Cusi is located at Jr. Jerusalén No. 216; its inscription reads “don Marco Cusi R.”. The richly ornamented Portada Sancho Usca Paucar is at Calle Jerusalén No. 245 and bears the inscription “don Sancho Usca Paucar”. Sancho Usca Paucar was the most important cacique of Villa Maras in his time. Another doorway belonged to the founder of Villa Maras, Captain Pedro Ortiz de Orue: the Portada de Ortiz Orue.
Craftsmanship and Andean Traditions
Items made in Maras include woven Aguasca textiles and crafts carved from salt stone. The carved pieces include Andean animal figures and corn motifs. Visitors can buy crafts and souvenirs both in Maras and at the Maras salt mines.
The Watakallariy ritual marks the beginning of the Andean agricultural year. It adds a cultural connection to agriculture to the craft traditions. When planning your trip, you can therefore consider historic buildings, contemporary crafts, and a ritual with agricultural significance as distinct aspects of the town.
Moray and the Salt Mines Nearby
Moray is an archaeological landscape with circular terraces associated with agricultural research and the use of different Andean altitudinal zones. The Salineras de Maras consist of approximately 4,500 salt ponds. They are arranged in stepped terraces on the slope of Cerro Qaqawiñay. Both destinations are near Maras, but have different focuses: Moray combines terraces with an archaeological landscape and agriculture, while the stepped salt ponds are the defining feature of the salt mines.
Moray is 7 km from Maras. The path to the entrance of the archaeological site is level. As opening conditions may change, check them before your visit. This lets you distinguish the journey to the site from the specific directions for navigating the archaeological grounds.
Exploring Maras on Foot
The town has tourist orientation and information signs, as well as walking paths. You can see the historic doorways on a walk through the narrow streets, focusing on the different façades and inscriptions. A town walk offers a different focus from a visit to the archaeological and landscape sites nearby. Which side of Maras you explore first depends on whether you are especially interested in architectural history and crafts or in terraced landscapes and agriculture.
Discover more destinations: Oroya, San Pedro, Yucay, Chillca, Cusco, Santa Teresa, Manire, Lamay
For the broader travel overview: Cuzco.
