Frequent guest author Clarence Fisk shares his journey to the Island of Chiloé in southern Chile in his article, La Ruta De Las Iglesias De La Isla Grande De Chiloé. (Orient yourself with this interactive map from Expedia.) While there, he visited and photographed some of the remaining famous wooden churches, and by following these pages, you can follow his journey with text and photos. (Click on the map for a much larger image of the Archipelago de Chiloé.)

Clarence explains:
En el siglo XVIII había unas 300 iglesias esparcidas a través de Chiloé y de sus islas. Este es el legado de los jesuitas, hoy quedan unas 80, son únicas en el mundo por estar construidas íntegramente de madera; no hay otras similares sino en Alemania y otro país europeo. Los jesuitas llegaron en 1608 y se quedaron hasta su expulsión de las colonias españolas en 1767. Su propósito era evangelizar la población a través de lo que se conoció como la “misión circulante”. En cada poblado o isla se construía una iglesia; en ellas no había un párroco residente sino que había delegaciones que las visitaban periódicamente, de una en una, a predicar, dar los sacramentos, etc.

Illustrations of some of the churches adorn a wall of local woods.

In the 18th century, there were about 300 churches established on the large island and the smaller islands clustered in the Archipelago of Chiloé. These were established first by Jesuit missionaries in 1608, then by the Franciscan friars who replaced them when the Jesuits were expelled from South America in 1767. The churches were part of the evangelical mission of the Roman Catholic Church and while almost every settlement had its own church, they shared the services of visiting priests who conducted services and dispensed the sacraments.

Of the hundreds of churches, some small, simple country churches, others larger and more elaborate, only 80 or so remain in various stages of repair. They are all made of wood, with wooden pegs instead of nails, and the wooden shingles called tejuelas cut from the Alerce, or larch, tree.

Many of these churches are listed by UNESCO as cultural heritage sites. Others like this one, are Desconocida, or unknown, and fallen into disrepair.

All photos displayed with the kind permission of © Clarence Fisk 2005. All rights reserved

Read about Isla Grande de Chiloé - Island of Legend and Lore