Sierras Azules. Religious artifacts and evidence of vandalism on a mountain in San Juan (western Argentina)

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35319/yachay.202683196

Keywords:

Sacred mountains, popular devotions, San Juan, Argentina

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to reflect the diversity of beliefs and ritual practices associated with high altitude spaces in the vicinity of the city of San Juan, in the Cuyo region of western Argentina. It is based on observations made by the author in the heights of the so-called Sierras Azules, crowned by crosses and hermitages that house images of the Virgin Mary in different states of preservation, including, in some cases, evidences of vandalism. The Sierras Azules attract hundreds of pilgrims during Holy Week, when a Mass is celebrated at the summit.

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Author Biography

María Constanza Ceruti, Universidad Católica de Salta, Argentina

Constanza Ceruti holds a PhD in History from the National University of Cuyo. She is a researcher for the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) and a full professor at the Catholic University of Salta. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences of Buenos Aires and the author of twenty-five books and over two hundred scientific papers on sacred mountains. She graduated with a Gold Medal in Anthropology and Archaeology from the University of Buenos Aires, and received the Gold Medal from the International Society of Women Geographers. She holds an Honorary Doctorate (Doctor Honoris Causa) in Humanities and Letters from Moravian University and was named a Distinguished Lecturer in Anthropology by the University of West Georgia. She is the first woman dedicated to high-altitude archaeology and a pioneer in frozen mummy studies.

References

Ceruti, María Constanza. El Camino de Santiago y las Montañas Sagradas de Galicia. Salta: Mundo Editorial, 2015.

Ceruti, María Constanza. “Sagres, San Vicente y Arrifana. Representación simbólica del paisaje y papel de los promontorios sagrados en la historia del oeste de Algarve”. Revista Del prudente Saber y el máximo posible de Sabor, n. 16 (2022): 82-103. DOI: https://doi.org/10.33255/26184141/1411

Ceruti, María Constanza. “Peregrinajes andinos a Sixilera y Punta Corral. Movilidades sagradas en montañas del oriente de Humahuaca”. Páginas 47-62 en Movilidades sagradas. Peregrinaciones, procesiones, turismo y viajes religiosos en la Argentina. Compilado por Fabian Flores y Rodolfo Puglisi. Buenos Aires: CONICET – UNLP, 2022.

Ceruti, María Constanza. “Las cruces del Cerro Mogote Bayo y Chumamaya. Accesibilidad y sacralidad del paisaje en la sierra de Comechingones (Merlo, San Luis, Argentina)”. SURANDINO Revista de Humanidades y Cultura 4, n. 7 (2023): 20-41.

Ceruti, María Constanza. Al camino con Ceferino. Peregrinación juvenil a un cerro sagrado en San Juan (oeste de Argentina). Salta: Universidad Católica de Salta (manuscrito en posesión de la autora), 2024.

Sierras Azules. Religious artifacts and evidence of vandalism on a mountain

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Published

2026-06-30

How to Cite

Ceruti, M. C. (2026). Sierras Azules. Religious artifacts and evidence of vandalism on a mountain in San Juan (western Argentina). Yachay, 43(83), 215–225. https://doi.org/10.35319/yachay.202683196

Issue

Vol. 43 No. 83 (2026): Revista Yachay n° 83

Section

Miscellany

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