9 December Avenue (), commonly known as Paseo Colón, is an avenue in the
historic centre 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 ...
,
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 ...
. The street is named after the
statue
A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or Casting (metalworking), cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to ...
of
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...
located in the avenue.
History
The place where the Paseo Colón extends today constituted, during the
viceregal era, the southern limit of the city where the
Walls of Lima stood. In 1898, during the government of President
Nicolás de Piérola
José Nicolás Baltasar Fernández de Piérola y Villena (known as "''El Califa''" ("The Caliph"); January 5, 1839 – June 23, 1913) was a Peruvian politician and Minister of Finance of Peru, Minister of Finance who served as the 23rd (1879 ...
, the avenue was drawn up with the name of ''9 de Diciembre'' and would later be renamed ''Paseo Colón'' due to its pedestrian nature. From the moment it was laid out, Paseo Colón was considered an aristocratic avenue since it was located in the middle of the ''
Parque de la Exposición''. As proof of this, the buildings on the road still show their republican-style decorations.
However, this road suffered a great deterioration during the eighties, currently it has undergone an efficient recovery.
See also
*
Historic Centre of Lima
The Historic Centre of Lima () is the historic city centre of the city of Lima, the capital of Peru. Located in the city's districts of Lima and Rímac, both in the Rímac Valley, it consists of two areas: the first is the Monumental Zone est ...
References
{{Landmarks in Lima
Colón
Lima District