Manzana Jesuitica

Cordoba is well known for the Jesuit sites in and around the city.  In 2000, UNESCO named Cordoba a World Heritage site--a prestigious honor.  A little history on the Jesuits:

Saint Ignatius of Loyola founded the Jesuit order, known as The Society of Jesus.  He and his compatriots intended to fund the education of youth and evangelizing missions.  Both of these goals are evident in Cordoba.  The Jesuits came to the area on evangelizing missions and set up camp around the city to do just so.  Also, they started many schools and universities in Cordoba, including the one I attend.

Today we had the opportunity to tour the Jesuit Block, or Manzana Jesuitica.  It consists of the church, and the building that was used as the university.  The university has a very interesting past.  When it was opened, only eighty students from all over South America were admitted.  At the university, the students would study for sixteen years to earn their doctorate degree.  Each year, only one to three students graduated.  It was a once in a lifetime opportunity.  That is, if you didn't graduate, you had to leave the university.  The Hall of Graduation was quite impressive; it is in the Baroque style, like much of the Block, and has influences of the French Salon.  This is were the graduates would endure the grueling three day, eight hours a day exam... in Latin.  Friends, family and peers would gather in the pews to observe this spectacle.  Doctors were gathered to question the graduates while the Docent of the school, and the governor of Cordoba presided over the affair.  The graduate sat in the hot seat, on a platform in front of everyone, with his mentor hovering above in the pulpit, watching the proceedings.  Once the test was completed, the graduate walked out onto the streets of Cordoba, where the city was gathered to welcome him.  Of course, the seventy-seven other students who did not graduate also gathered--to throw rotten fruits and vegetables and sling mud.  Interestingly, this is still a tradition today in Argentina--when someone graduates, friends and family gather to throw some nasty stuff at them.  Fun, huh?  Hopefully they don't consider completing this pre-intensive course "graduating."  Unfortunately, photos were not allowed in the Hall of Graduation, or in the Library, where books from 1515-1765 are preserved.




The church is just as fascinating, if not more.  Started in 1640 and completed in 1676, the church has a Baroque style, but a simple facade, as you can note in the pictures here.  I was astounded to find out that the entire structure is made from wood.  The vault is actually the largest wooden structure in Argentina.  It almost looks like a ship's hull, which makes sense, as the builder was a Flemish shipbuilder--Philippe Lemair.

 The altar was once made out of silver, but after the Jesuits were expelled from Argentina, the church was ravaged for anything of monetary value.  Besides the silver altar, they found little.  Although the entire church gleams from gold, there is but a speck of the actual precious metal there. In fact, the artists used gold leaf and special painting technique.  First, they applied a rosy violet paint and then tacked the gold leaf over it.  As it ages, the paint underneath is becoming more and more apparent.


In the end, the Jesuits were expelled from Argentina because of their unruliness.  In actuality, the Order didn't believe in following a King or authority figure outside of the Pope and this caused some issues with the King of Spain.  We were lucky enough to look at the book, the thesis of one monk of the Order that caused their expulsion.  And when I say look at, I mean, we saw it behind glass in it's specially preserved metal case.  Nevertheless, it was a fascinating look at history, a history of which I hadn't heard previously.