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Byron Ortiz made it possible to get a real sense of Semana Santa (Holy Week) through his photos —7 of the over 100 images in his Holy Week archives—. La Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo is very grateful for allowing the usage of his photos here.

Churches serve as terminals from which processions depart or arrive. Churches also serve as home-base for all the brotherhoods of cucuruchos and sisterhoods. Churches also put their best face for the Holy Week and many get a paint job and/or restoration works in the weeks prior to Semana Santa.

With this photo we wave goodbye to Semana Santa and to Holy Week’s processions. I was told the last procession, the Resurrection (Resurección) procession comes out on Easter Sunday (today) a 6 a.m. and its back in the church by 10 in the morning. But, before we say our farewells, I bring to you the photo of a procession as it nears its entrance to the cathedral. You can see Antigua Guatemala’s Cathedral in the background with a procession and its followers in the foreground. If this is your first time around here you can click the following posts to get an idea of what this place looks like during the day. It is also a good idea to click in the photo above to see thousands of candles and the all the details.

1. Antigua’s Cathedral and Volcán de Agua
2. Antigua’s Cathedral at Sunset
3. Illuminated Antigua’s Cathedral at twilight
4. Requiem for the Rain
5. Antigua Guatemala’s Cathedral
6. Taxis at Antigua’s Cathedral

You can view all the photos of churches published in the Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo by clicking the link or by browsing the Atriums & Churches category on the sidebar.

Can somebody tell me how many church buildings are in Antigua Guatemala and how many of them are still used as churches? Hint, the information is in the archives of this site.

Thanks to Byron Ortiz for lending his photos of Semana Santa (Holy Week), so we can get window-view of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala.

La Dolorosa or The Sorrowful Mother is the biblical figure of sorrowful mother Mary which follows Jesus in his way to his crucifixion. This act is represented by a smaller anda (long carved wooden flatbed image-carrying float [*]) —carrying the effigy of sorrowful Mother Mary and other female biblical representations— which is hauled exclusively by women who mostly dress in black or white as this is the appropriate dress code for a funeral. Jesus’ funeral.

All this christian and catholic background information is meant to serve as means for the understanding of the religious and cultural manifestations that take place in Antigua Guatemala during Easter. So don’t worry, we will come back to a religion-free site by next Monday; stay tune!

On the other hand, please let me know what is your opinion or feelings regarding the coverage of this yearly event? Am I doing a good balance between the photographs and background information or am I over doing it? I really would appreciate your feedback.

Tags: Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo / Antigua / Guatemala / Holy Week Elements / procession / Semana Santa in Antigua

Thanks to Byron Ortiz for lending his photos of Semana Santa (Holy Week), so we can get a room with a view of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala.

This week we are running a mini-series: Elements of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala and its world-famous Semana Santa.

Holy Thursday and Good Friday? Where do these names come from? Maybe from the Borat film.

Nevertheless, Good Friday is the culmination of the Holy Week Celebrations and the processions end at the Calvario Church (Calvario is the Spanish word for Calvary or Golgotha). The entrance of the Calvario Church in La Antigua Guatemala is a yellow façade with three arches, topped by three bells and three crosses —one larger than the other two— with a very large concrete cross in front. Can you see the obvious architectonic reference to Jesus’ crucifixion?

Just before we close the window to the Holy Week Celebrations, I found this fabulous, detail-rich description, spiced with insider’s information, about the whole ritual of Semana Santa by Lito Galvan. Here are a couple sample paragraphs to entice you to follow the link and read the entire piece.

A Lenten celebration spent in Guatemala is beyond doubt exhilarating. True to seasoned travelers’ tale, Holy Week or Semana Santa exceeds everyone’s wildest spiritual expectation.

The event kicks off on Palm Sunday with the blessing of the palms then starts a climactic crescendo leading to Good Friday crucifixion, retreating into a hiatus on Black Saturday – in theory, and finally bursting into a culminating finale on Easter Sunday.

The Guatemalan stunning flashes of tradition and pageantry can be observed in: (1) palm blessing and display; (2) window dressing on homes and churches; (3) spectacular street carpet decorating along the processional route; (4) and the passionate procession of grand ecclesiastical images.

… read the entire piece at

Lito Galvan’s Dressing-Up for Semana Santa – Antigua, Guatemala

It is an interesting and funny surprise to have somebody list some of the elements of the Holy Week Celebration in Antigua Guatemala two years ago, along with the most complete description of the Semana Santa I’ve seen online. Certainly, there is nothing new under the sun. I take my hat off to Lito.

Tags: Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo / Antigua / Guatemala / Holy Week Elements / procession / Semana Santa in Antigua

Thanks to Byron Ortiz for lending his photos of Semana Santa (Holy Week), so we can get a better picture of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala.

This week we are running a mini-series: Elements of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala and its world-famous Semana Santa.

With the holidays of Semana Santa La Antigua Guatemala goes from a tiny peaceful, colorful colonial town to a maddening craze-driven-crowds city like New York City or Tokyo where you can barely walk.

It is not a light statement when Santiago Durham says: the whole Semana Santa is a penitent act, especially for those of us who live here. Nonetheless, it is the most spectacular yearly event in Antigua Guatemala.

By the way, the original name of the town is Santiago (Saint James) de los Caballeros de Guatemala. Soon I will have a post about the disambiguation of the La Antigua Guatemala name and the reasons for it. Stay tune!

Tags: Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo / Antigua / Guatemala / Holy Week Elements / procession / Semana Santa in Antigua

I want to thank Byron Ortiz for allowing me to use his photos of Semana Santa (Holy Week), so we can better understand the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala.

This week we are running a mini-series: Elements of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala and its world-famous Semana Santa.

Cucuruchos with their purple or violet cone-head dress are another prominent element of Semana Santa in Antigua Guatemala. Last week, Santiago Durham asked what its the significance of the color purple or violet in the dress and banners during Semana Santa, well it took a lot of digging to find out (I turned around and asked my office coworker), but I can now tell you the purple is worn as a sign of penitence. As a matter of fact, processions are a sign of penitence as well, heck the whole Semana Santa is a penitent act.

Tags: Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo / Antigua / Guatemala / Holy Week Elements / procession / Semana Santa in Antigua

I want to thank Byron Ortiz for allowing me to use his photos of Semana Santa (Holy Week), so we can better understand the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala.

This week we are running a mini-series: Elements of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala and its world-famous Semana Santa.

The making of carpets from sawdust, pine-needles, flowers, vegetables is a community-forming tradition. People get together by block or near-by neighbors to create the carpets on which the processions will pass by. Sometimes the making of the carpets is done at night, all night so they are ready for next day’s procession.

You can check LD’s Holy Week Survival Guide for other details and relevant information regarding Semana Santa in Guatemala, including the trips to the beach. Didn’t I tell you the beach is very close to Antigua? About 1 hour’s driving time. Heck I even showed you a satellite map view of Southern Guatemala (check below the caption for the volcanoes).

Tags: Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo / Antigua / Guatemala / Holy Week Elements / sawdust carpets / Semana Santa in Antigua

First of all, this is the first time I am using somebody else’s photo in Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo. I want to thank Byron Ortiz for allowing me to use his photos of Semana Santa, so I can better show you what is the big deal about the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala. I am sure I will use other peoples photographs more often if they can better describe the subject at hand.

This week will run a mini-series with Elements of the Holy Week Celebrations in La Antigua Guatemala and its world-famous Semana Santa.

The making of sawdust carpets (alfombras de aserrí­n) with its vivid colors and eye-catching patterns are among the most prominent elements of the Holy Week celebrations. You can come back all this week to see other samples of carpets made with flowers and fruits and vegetables.

Tags: Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo / Antigua / Guatemala / Holy Week Elements / sawdust carpets / Semana Santa in Antigua