Iglesia y Convento de las Capuchinas, Antigua Guatemala

The Iglesia y Convento de las Capuchinas is a notable convent and church in Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala. It is one of the finest examples of an 18th-century convent in Guatemala. It was consecrated in 1736 but like the rest of the city suffered damage during the 1751 and 1773 earthquakes respectively, and was abandoned by order of the Captain General at the time.

History

The building complex, originally called "Convento e Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Pilar de Zaragoza" -Convent and Church of Our Lady of Zaragoza-, was approved by king Felipe V in 1725 just when the Order of Capuchins arrived to Santiago de los Caballeros. Construction started on 1731 and was blessed on 1736 under Diego de Porres supervision; in fact, it was the last convent to be built in the city, and the first one that stopped asking for a donation to the new nuns, allowing then poor ladies to embrace religious life.
Daily routine for the nuns was ruled by strict regulations which include for some the maximum discipline on poverty, penance and fasting; also, they should survive on the tithing only; nevertheless, since the arrival of this convent there were two kinds of nuns in Santiago de los Caballeros: discalced and urban.

Attribute	Discalced nuns	Urban nuns
Designation	Community life	Private life
Admission cost	-	Donation in goods or property to produce revenues for the congregation
Lifestyle	Enclosed	Enclosed
Prayer	In the chorus	In the chorus
Austerity rules	Strict: depended on tithing, silent at all times, except to pray and never drank chocolate.	Relaxed: could have external income and were allowed to drink chocolate, except during fasting.
Rooms	Common life in recreation rooms of work. They had a tiny "celda" which they only use to sleep.	No common life at all. They lived in a large cell that was practically a small size house.
Feeding	They ate together in silence in dining halls. They could not eat meat.	They prepared their own food. They were allowed to eat meat unless they were fasting.
Help	They had to perform all the monastery chores, or work in community service for the congregation.	They could have personal servants and slaves.
Clothing	Austere rustic clothes fibers.	Fine clothes; often wore jewelry.
Footwear	Simple sandals	Shoes or slippers.
Special attributes	-	Tutors of girls entrusted to the convent.

In 1920, prince Wilhelm of Sweden visited Antigua Guatemala and mentioned that the old Capuchin monastery with its many underground passages from the monks' cells to those of the nuns was worth a visit, especially one part where the cells were built in a circle surrounding a central common chamber.