Lima Penitentiary

Former prison building in Lima, Peru

Lima Penitentiary

Penitenciaría de Lima

The building in 1875

General information
Status| Demolished
Location| Lima, Peru
Construction started| 31 January 1856
Construction stopped| 1860
Inaugurated| 23 July 1862
Closed| June 1961
Demolished| August 1961
Owner| Government of Peru
Design and construction
Architect(s)| Michele Trefogli
Maximiliano Mimey

The Lima Penitentiary (Spanish: Penitenciaría de Lima), also known simply as El Panóptico, was a prison building that existed in Lima, Peru. It had a panopticon layout, and was designed by Michele Trefogli and Maximiliano Mimey.

## History

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The penitentiary was built between 1856 and 1860, by order of President Ramón Castilla due to the lack of a prison system in the country. It was inaugurated in 1862.[1] After a study carried out by Mariano Paz Soldán, the construction of the building was arranged by architects Michele Trefogli and Maximiliano Mimey.[2] It was located south of the city, near the Guadalupe Gate of the Walls of Lima.

The front of the building reflected a severe architectural style, showing its reclusive purpose and trying to project an impregnable image, while the layout of the rooms inside included areas where prisoners worked during the day and cells where they were confined in the nights.[2]

The building existed for more than 100 years and characters such as President Augusto B. Leguía were imprisoned there, confined there after the coup that removed him from power, although he did not die in prison but in the Bellavista Naval Hospital.

There were several workshops in the penitentiary which produced a number of commodities using prison labor. Carpentry, shoemaking, baking, printing, bear law, and bookbinding were among the trades practiced. In 1934, Carlos E. Carrillo Velasquez was the General Administrator in charge of the workshops.

The prison operated until June 1961, later being demolished in August. Before its demolition, all inmates were moved out to El Frontón prison.[3] In its place are currently the Lima Civic Center and the Sheraton Lima Hotel & Convention Center, which were built during the government of Juan Velasco Alvarado.[1]

### Cristo del Penal

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During the prison's slow demolition process, an image of Jesus Christ on Mount Golgotha was discovered painted on a wall of a prison cell on June 1964, becoming a point of attraction for local neighbours and other visitors from the city.[4] The image's planned demolition became controversial: despite being supported by the Catholic Church in Peru, it was opposed by the crowds that surrounded the image, and on the date where the demolition was to take place, the crane operator claimed that a strange feeling overcame him and was unable to carry out the act. The image was eventually moved to San Juan de Lurigancho, with the process beginning on September 23, 1964, and forgotten for a period until became the centre of attention again. This time, the Peruvian press was able to locate its author, Rubén Darío Muñiz Calvo, by that point in Iquitos, who stated that he had simply reproduced a stamp gifted to him by the prison's chaplain. The image is reportedly visited by hundreds of devotees in its new location.[5]

## Notable inmates

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* Augusto B. Leguía, President of Peru
* Ciro Alegría, journalist
* Delfín Lévano, anarchist
* Dr. Fredrick Wilson, researcher
* Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre, politician
* Jorge Villanueva Torres [es], a man convicted and controversially executed in 1957 for the kidnapping, rape and murder of a young boy.[6]

## See also

[edit]

* Lima Civic Center
* Sheraton Lima Historic Center
* Larkin Expedition

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Batalla, Carlos (2019-10-27). "¿Sabía cómo fue el cierre de la cárcel más antigua del Perú?". El Comercio.
2. ^ a b "La penitenciaría de Lima". Arqandina, El Portal Peruano de Arquitectura.
3. ^ Batalla, Carlos (2020-04-28). "La impresionante mudanza y demolición de la Penitenciaría de Lima a inicios de los años 60". El Comercio.
4. ^ Batalla, Carlos (2021-09-10). "La historia del Cristo que no quiso irse del viejo panóptico de Lima: el mural carcelario que despertó un gran debate hace 57 años". El Comercio.
5. ^ Obando, Manoel (2022-11-06). "El Cristo del Penal: La imagen que casi le hace la competencia al 'Señor de los Milagros'". Infobae.
6. ^ "Se cumplieron 60 años de la ejecución del 'Monstruo de Armendáriz'". Perú 21. 2017-12-13.

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Lima landmarks

Pre-Columbian buildings|

* Huaca Huallamarca
* Huaca Pucllana
* Huaca Santa Catalina
* Pachacamac
* Puruchuco

Colonial buildings|

* Balconies of Lima
* Basilica and Convent of Nuestra Señora de la Merced
* Monument
* Plazoleta
* Basilica and Convent of San Francisco
* Catacombs
* Basilica and Convent of San Pedro
* Basilica of Santo Domingo
* Plazuela
* Casa de Aliaga
* Casa de Divorciadas
* Casa de Osambela
* Casa de Pilatos
* Casa del Oidor
* Casa Goyeneche
* Casa Hacienda Punchauca
* Casa Matusita
* Casa O'Higgins
* Casa Riva-Agüero
* Casona of the National University of San Marcos
* Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
* Museum of Art
* Theatre
* Cathedral Basilica of Lima
* Sanctuary
* Cementerio Presbítero Matías Maestro
* Cripta de los Héroes
* Church of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
* Church of Saint Catherine of Siena
* Church of Saint Lazarus
* Church of the Good Death
* Church of the Holy Christ of Wonders
* Church of the Orphans
* Church of Our Lady of Copacabana
* Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel
* Church of Our Lady of Patronage
* Church of Saint Anne
* Church of Saint Augustine
* Church of Saint Liberata
* Church of Saint Mary Magdalene
* Convent of Our Lady of the Angels
* Cuartel Barbones
* Fort of Santa Catalina
* Iglesia de la Recoleta
* Mogrovejo Hospital
* Monastery of Saint Rose of Lima
* National Mint of Peru
* Palacio de la Magdalena
* Palacio de Torre Tagle
* Panteón de los Próceres
* Plaza de toros de Acho
* Real Felipe Fortress
* Royal College of the University of San Marcos
* Royal Hospital of Saint Andrew
* Sanctuary and Monastery of Las Nazarenas
* Sanctuary of Saint Rose of Lima
* Seminario de Lima
* St. Clare's Monastery
* Mill
* St. Sebastian's Church
* Trinitarian Church
* Walls of Lima

Other touristic buildings|

* Archbishop's Palace
* Association of Amateur Artists
* Atlas Building
* Bar Cordano
* BBVA Building
* Begonias Tower
* Casa Arenas Loayza
* Casa de Correos y Telégrafos
* Casa de las Trece Monedas
* Casa del Pueblo
* Casa Fernandini, Lima
* Casa Fernandini, Santa María del Mar
* Casa Roosevelt
* Casa Rusa
* Casa Sal y Rosas
* Casa Suárez
* Chinatown
* Arch
* Chocavento Tower
* Church of Our Lady of the Forsaken
* Club de la Unión
* Club Nacional
* Country Club Lima Hotel
* Cristo del Pacífico
* Delfines Hotel & Convention Center
* Desamparados station
* Diez de Octubre School
* Eduardo Dibos Colosseum
* El Ángel Cemetery
* Gamarra
* Government Palace
* Obelisk
* Gran Hotel Bolívar
* Gran Hotel Maury
* Guadalupe College
* Hermitage of Barranco
* Hospital Civil de la Misericordia
* Hotel Crillón
* Immaculate Heart of Mary Church
* Monument
* Institute of Hygiene
* Interbank Building
* Javier Alzamora Valdez Building
* La Atarjea
* La Colmena Building
* La Rosa Náutica
* Larcomar
* Teatro La Plaza
* Library of Congress
* Lima Civic Center
* Legislative Palace
* Lima Convention Center
* Lima Stock Exchange Building
* Luis Gálvez Chipoco Stadium
* Mesa Redonda
* Monumental Stadium
* Morro Solar War Monument
* Mosque of Lima
* National Geographic Institute
* National Library of Peru
* National Maternal Perinatal Institute
* National Stadium of Peru
* Palacio de la Exposición
* Palacio de Miraflores
* Palacio Municipal
* Palace of Justice
* Petroperú Building
* Public Ministry of Peru
* Quinta Heeren
* Quinta Leuro
* Quinta Presa
* Rospigliosi Castle
* Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus Church
* Sheraton Lima Historic Center
* Stone of Taulichusco
* The Westin Lima Hotel & Convention Center
* Torre Banco de la Nación

Museums and theatres|

* Aeronautical Museum
* Bodega y Quadra Museum
* Canout Theatre
* Casa Grau Naval Museum
* Combatants of the Morro de Arica Museum
* DIRCOTE Museum
* Gold Museum of Peru and Arms of the World
* Gran Teatro Nacional
* José Carlos Mariátegui Museum
* Larco Museum
* Lima Art Museum
* Metropolitan Museum
* Morro Solar Planetarium
* Municipal Theatre Museum
* Museum of Congress and the Inquisition
* Museum of Contemporary Art
* Museum of the Brain
* Museum of the Central Reserve Bank of Peru
* Museum of Elections and Democracy
* Museum of Italian Art
* Museum of Natural History
* National Afro-Peruvian Museum
* National Museum of Archaeology, Anthropology and History
* National Museum
* National Museum of Peruvian Culture
* Naval Museum
* Pinacotheca of Lima
* Teatro Colón
* Teatro Municipal
* Teatro Peruano Japonés
* Teatro Segura

Squares and promenades|

* Cinco esquinas
* Jirón de la Unión
* Pasaje Olaya
* Monument
* Paseo de los Héroes Navales
* Las llamas
* La yunta
* Paseo Colón
* Columbus Statue
* Pizza Blvd.
* Plaza de la Bandera
* Plaza Bolívar
* Plaza Bolognesi
* Plaza de la Democracia
* Plaza Dos de Mayo
* Plaza Francia
* Statue of Liberty
* Plaza Grau
* Monument
* Plaza Italia
* Plaza José Faustino Sánchez Carrión
* Plaza Manco Cápac
* Monument
* Plaza Mayor
* Fountain
* Plaza Perú
* Plaza Ramón Castilla
* Monument
* Plaza San Martín
* Lamp of the Three Graces
* Plazuela de las Artes
* Plazuela del Teatro
* Monument

Parks and zoos|

* Alameda Chabuca Granda
* Alameda de los Descalzos
* Museum
* Bridge of Sighs
* Campo de Marte
* Monument
* Costa Verde Pan-American Complex
* El Olivar
* Friendship Park
* Cultural Centre
* Museum
* Heroes of Independence Park
* Huachipa Zoo
* Malecón de Miraflores
* Love Park
* Villena Bridge
* Medicinal Botanical Garden
* Kennedy Park
* Lachay National Reserve
* Pantanos de Villa Wildlife Refuge
* Parque de la Exposición
* Fountain
* Parque de La Muralla
* Pizarro statue
* Parque de la Reserva
* Parque de las Leyendas
* Paseo de Aguas
* Plazuela Chabuca Granda
* Monument
* Reducto № 2
* Museum
* University Park
* Clock

Education|

* Antonio Ruiz de Montoya University
* Cayetano Heredia University
* Federico Villarreal National University
* National Superior Autonomous School of Fine Arts
* Cultural Centre
* National University of Engineering
* National University of San Marcos
* Officers' School of the National Police of Peru
* Peruvian University of Applied Sciences
* Pontifical Catholic University of Peru
* Raúl Porras Barrenechea Institute
* Ricardo Palma University
* Technological University of Peru
* University of Engineering and Technology
* Campus
* University of Lima

Health|

* Archbishop Loayza National Hospital
* Dos de Mayo National Hospital
* Edgardo Rebagliati Martins National Hospital
* San Bartolomé National Hospital
* Víctor Larco Herrera Hospital

Nearby areas with beaches|

* Ancón
* Callao
* Base
* Port
* Chancay
* Chorrillos
* La Herradura
* Miraflores
* La Pampilla
* Pucusana

Former|

* Banco Comercial
* Barranco Lake
* Barranco Zoo
* Cabildo of Lima
* Casa Alcántara
* Casa Marcionelli
* Casa Oechsle
* Casa Tenaud
* Church of Our Lady of the Forsaken
* Church of Saint Mary of Charity
* Cine Tauro
* El Sexto Prison
* Gate of Lima
* Giacoletti Building
* Great Clock of Lima
* Hipódromo de San Felipe
* Hipódromo de Santa Beatriz
* Lima Penitentiary
* Limatambo Airport
* Limatambo Building
* Marsano Palace
* Moorish Arch
* Museo de la Nación
* National Stadium
* San Jorge Prison
* San Martín barracks
* Venetian Palace
* Saint Paul's College
* Viceregal Palace

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