On my last day in Bogota, Colombia and South America I decided to visit the salt cathedral in Zipaquira. It is about 45minutes to the northern bus terminal and then another 1.5 hours north to Zipa as the locals call it.
The town is actually very pleasant, with several pedestrian streets lined with colonial buildings. There are several squares one which boasts the cathedral.
The salt cathedral is located in the old underground workings of a salt mine. It was very busy as it was a weekend, not only a weekend but long weekend.
Everyone grabs an audio guide and walks down through the main tunnel into the mine. The tour starts with all 14 stations of the cross. I had expected that the stations would be more ornate. However, they were simple representations of the cross at the various stages of the stations. Many of them had the old workings /tunnels as their back drop.
It is amazing that the miners spent their free time forming these carvings underground, which the Colombian people voted as their first wonder of the country.
After the stations you walk through under a dome structure towards the actual cathedral, where services are still held at midday every Sunday. The dome is 11m in diameter and 7 miners worked on the structure.
From here you can see the 16m tall cross the forms the backdrop to the altar. It spans 10m and weighs 16 ton.
There is a notable statue of Pope Francis on the side of the altar.
At the start of the aisle is a carving, by a local artist, depicting the creation of man. It is the same scene as is depicted by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel, though only focusing on the hands/ part bodies.
The artist made God’s hand 3x bigger than Adam’s. He also avoided giving God a face, so that the person looking at the work can put their own image to it. There are also representations of wind, earth, water and fire in the sculpture.
The workings of the mine cover the 1km2 of the salt deposit, in 3 different levels. The top levels used room and pillar mining, while the bottom level, where the newest cathedral is situated used long room method. Mining on the 3rd level commenced in 1979.
One reply on “Zipaquira”
Bravo! Amazing and excellent way to say thanks to God to protect you during you visit in South America. Szczesc Boze dla wszystkich gornikow. Obchodza Barborke jak w Peru?