page_title: Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy (Yarumal)
section_title: Urban context
hierarchical_section_title: Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy (Yarumal) / Urban context
caption_attribution_description: Español: Escuela Rosenda Torres y Basílica Menor de Nuestra Señora de la Merced, en el Municipio de Yarumal, Antioquia. Colombia.
context_page_description: The Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy is a minor basilica in Yarumal, Colombia. It belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa de Osos, and is the seat of the parish of the same name. The basilica is devoted to the Virgin Mary, and the patron saint is the Virgin of Mercy. It is the titular church of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga.
  It was designed and built in the Renaissance Revival style as a larger replacement for Yarumal's first church. Begun in 1866, the construction project suffered from multiple difficulties including its enormous cost, the civil wars in the late nineteenth century, its partial collapse in 1890, and an earthquake in 1938. These delayed completion of the church until 1944, at which point it was consecrated. During construction, the Chapel of Saint Aloysius was made a parish church.
  The basilica is rectangular, divided longitudinally into three parts. The main façade is made up of two domed towers joined by the central nave. It is home to several works of art, notably Nuestra Señora de la Merced, a 1798 painting of the Virgin of Mercy that is considered to be miraculous.
context_section_description: The basilica is located on the north side of the Epifanio Mejía Park in "The Centre" neighbourhood. This park is filled with historical and cultural symbols, and is the primary location for religious and civic activities. It was previously called Bolívar Square in memory of Simón Bolívar, but it was renamed after the renowned poet and the composer of the Himno Antioqueño, Epifanio Mejía, whose remains rest in the church.
  Yarumal has three urban parishes: Our Lady of Mercy, La Inmaculada, and El Carmen. It is also home to four rural parishes: Cedeño, Ochalí, El Cedro, and Llanos de Cuivá. The primary part of Yarumal contains few buildings taller than five stories, so the church is the dominant structure in the skyline, and is an easily identifiable landmark. Standing out next to the basilica is the Rosenda Torres School, a building designed by Belgian architect Agustín Goovaerts, as well as the municipal palace and some other architecturally striking buildings.
caption: Rosenda Torres School, designed by Belgian architect Agustín Goovaerts, and the Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon PowerShot A460", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "180", "Image YResolution": "180", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image DateTime": "2009:07:02 13:34:31", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "196", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "180", "Thumbnail YResolution": "180", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "5108", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6359", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/125", "EXIF FNumber": "8", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "80", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:07:02 13:34:31", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:07:02 13:34:31", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "3", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "223/32", "EXIF ApertureValue": "6", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "95/32", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "27/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2048", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1536", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "2048", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "1536", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "3112", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "1024000/97", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "307200/29", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard"}