La Rotonda brings to life the meeting between Bolívar and San Martín. A historic moment engraved in this iconic monument of the city.
Hemiciclo La Rotonda.
Texto: Patricio Añazco / Fotos: Jairo Cabrera.
The Hemiciclo La Rotonda, located in the centre of the Malecón 2000, reminds us that Guayaquil is a centre of secret and historical encounters. It commemorates the famous “Conversation of Guayaquil”, held on 26 July 1822 by the liberators Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín, a milestone in the city’s history that over time has become another representative feature of the urban environment.
The history of the La Rotonda hemicycle.
The work was carried out by the Sociedad Constructora Nacional Fénix and completed in 1929. The Entrevista de Guayaquil, in marble, was originally designed as a roundabout with an impressive ensemble of sculptures, but it proved inefficient for the flow of traffic, so it was converted into a semicircle.
In 1935, the Council awarded the commission to the Spanish sculptor José Antonio Homs, and the overall design of the architectural project to the sculptor Juan Rovira. The work was delivered in May 1938. The hemicycle of La Rotonda was the place where the two figures met.
