Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Elevation

Ambato's cathedral basilica stands on the south side of the Plaza Juan Montalvo, the city's main square, and is the most prominent religious building in the city centre. The neo-Gothic exterior, with its twin towers and elaborate stonework, is more imposing than the interior, though the latter has some good stained glass and a quiet atmosphere away from the street noise.

The plaza itself is worth sitting in for a while. Juan Montalvo, one of Ecuador's greatest prose writers, was born in Ambato in 1832, and the square is named for him. A statue of Montalvo stands at the centre — a good reference point for orienting yourself in the city.

The cathedral is open during morning mass and in the late afternoons. Entry is free.

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The original Ambato cathedral was destroyed in the catastrophic 1949 earthquake that levelled much of the city. The present neo-Gothic basilica, completed in the 1950s, was built partly as a monument to the city's reconstruction — a deliberate statement that Ambato would rebuild bigger and better than what was lost.

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