La Manzana de Las Luces Review

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La Manzana de Las Luces

  • Address: Perú 272, at Av. Julio A. Roca (known as Diagonal Sur), Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires
  • Phone: 11/4342-6973

Fodor's Review:

Constructed by the Jesuits in the early 1800s, prior to their expulsion, La Manzana de Las Luces, a cluster of buildings southwest of Plaza de Mayo, was an enclave meant for higher learning. The metaphorical luces (lights) of its name refer to the "illuminated" scholars who lived within. This was the colonial administrative headquarters for the Jesuits' vast land holdings in northeastern Argentina and Paraguay. In 1780 the city's first School of Medicine was established here, and it became home to the University of Buenos Aires early in the 19th century. Among the historic buildings still standing are the Parroquia de San Ignacio de Loyola and the neoclassic Colegio Nacional, a top-notch public school and a hotbed of political activism.

You can tour parts of the historic tunnels, still undergoing archaeological excavation, which linked several churches in the area to the Cabildo and the port. The original purpose of these tunnels is a source of speculation—were they used for defense or smuggling?

  • Cost: Free
  • Open: Weekdays 10-7, weekends 3-7
  • Metro: A to Plaza de Mayo, D to Catedral, E to Bolívar
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