The Cercado de Lima ('Walled Lima'), Damero de Pizarro ('Pizarro's Checkerboard'), or Lima Cuadrada ('Squared Lima') is an area of the historic center of

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

(capital of

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

) located within the old walls of the city.

Location and history

The area of the Cercado de Lima corresponds to the original layout of the city. Its current boundaries within the city are the

Rímac River The Rímac River is located in western Peru and is the most important source of potable water for the Lima and Callao Metropolitan Area. It belongs to the Pacific Slope, into which it flows after bathing the cities of Lima and Callao, togethe ...

to the north, Abancay Avenue to the east, Colmena Avenue to the south and Tacna Avenue to the west. Its name derives from it being the oldest and most central part of the city and because its urban layout maintains the classic Spanish style of streets and perpendicular avenues that form homogeneously square blocks. The area contains the main historical monuments of the city and several of the public buildings of the government of Peru including the Government Palace and the

Metropolitan Cathedral of Lima The Basilica Cathedral of Lima, commonly known as the Metropolitan Cathedral of Lima, and formerly the Iglesia Metropolitana de los Reyes, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Lima, Peru. It is the seat of the Archdiocese of Lima. Its construction be ...

References

{{reflist Geography of Lima Historic districts Lima District Historic Centre of Lima