Entrada principal Catedral San Jose

The Catedral de San José stands out for its unique blend of a functioning parish church at the front and a vast, roofless expanse of ruins extending behind it. Located on the east side of the city's central square, this site was once the Primate Cathedral of Antigua Guatemala, inaugurated in sixteen eighty as one of the most grand and luxurious churches in the Americas. Master architect Joseph de Porres designed the structure with five naves and eighteen chapels, filling it with ivory, silver, and fine art.