Holy Week in Popayán
The Holy Week in Popayán, Cauca (Colombia), is the celebration of the Passion and death of Jesus Christ through daily processions continuously performed since the sixteenth century between Friday of Sorrows nights and Holy Saturday. The processions take place in the ancient streets of the "White City". Religious images of Spanish, Andalusian, Quito, Italian and Payanes arranged on a wooden platform with four front and four back "barrotes" (bars) are carried in the shoulders of the "Cargueros". These images are representations of different episodes recounted in the Gospels on the Passion, Crucifixion and Death of Jesus Christ. Each performance is a "paso" (step). The steps are taken through the streets, a distance of a cross-shaped layout since the time of the Conquest, passing by the main churches and temples of the city.
| Holy Week in Popayán | |
|---|---|
| Official name | Semana Santa |
| Observed by | Popayán, Colombia |
| Type | Religious, Historical, Cultural |
| Significance | Commemoration of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus |
| Celebrations | Processions |
| Begins | Friday of Sorrows |
| Ends | Holy Saturday |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Holy Week processions in Popayán | |
|---|---|
UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage | |
| Country | Colombia |
| Reference | 00259 |
| Region | Latin America and the Caribbean |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 2009 (4th session) |
| List | Representative |
On September 30, 2009 it was declared a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by the UNESCO committee.