The Town of Maras, Cusco

Maras is located 48 km northwest of Cusco, 12 km of Urubamba, and on the 3028 meters. The temperature fluctuates between 1 and 21 degrees Celsius.

Maras was an essential village during the viceroyalty (the leading salt supplier of the southern highlands), as evidenced by the church and houses that still have the Indian nobility shields on their facades. The places are adobe, with white walls, roofs, and blue windows; the streets are stone and mud. The lintels can imply inscribed in stone the date they built, their owner, or some shield or ornament.

The Spaniards founded Maras in 1556, and it was in charge of the encomendero Pedro Ortiz de Orue. Whose house is located a block from the place of arms, in the lintel of his door? The data of its owner does read. It was he who established this custom, which continues to this day. It is recommended to see the house belonging to the Inca Tupac Sinchi Roca (Jerusalem 249), the Jesuit portal (Jerusalem 233), and the cover of Sancho Usca Paucar (Jerusalem 245), which surprises for its work and ornamentation.

The Church San Francisco, built by Orue, has four altarpieces in the Baroque style of the seventeenth century, with beautiful carvings covered with gold leaf. The Cusco school of Antonio Sinchi Roca has paintings on the walls, with scenes from the Gospel and portraits of saints.

At present, Maras’ main economic activity is agriculture. Among its most visited attractions are Salineras, located 10 km away. Of the village. Nearby is the Andenes de Moray

The Saltworks of Maras Cusco

• The Salinas de Maras in Cusco, or Salinas de Maras as they are also called, are salt mines whose exploitation is as old as the Tahuantinsuyo. The Salinas cross by a stream that feeds saltwater pools on terraces or platforms.
• The salt of Maras dates thousands of years and is inherited in each family but is managed communally.
• The name of the Salineras in Quechua is Kachi Raqay.
• The view of the pool is spectacular. The villagers show visitors their ancestral techniques, allowing them to intervene in the collection, festivals, and Andean rituals.
  The place is highly recommended for lovers of photography. The area is ideal for trekking and mountain biking.

Maras Tourist Attractions

Maras.

It is an impressive salt mining complex, which the Incas already exploited for economic exchange and value. From Maras, you can visit the salt mines by a horseshoe path, where it is expected to find bundles that load the sacks of salt extracted from the natural salinas.

Temple.

It is an outstanding colonial church made of Adobe with typical religious architecture. Inside, you can find cuzqueñas paintings representing the Last Supper, Jesus, and the apostles. The church also shows beautiful houses with Indian noblemen’s shields, reflecting a time of prosperity during the colony.

The Covers.

They are beautifully carved stone carvings in high relief and geometric and zoomorphic figures.