Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario: A Beautiful Church in Itagüí

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario is a notable and historic Roman Catholic church located in the Itagüí municipality south of Medellín, which is worth seeing if you like old and historic churches.

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario is a church with a history that traces back to 1743. In addition, it’s an Eclectic-style church that has many beautiful stained-glass windows and pieces of religious artwork.

Note there is another church named Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario located in Bello in the north, which we previously looked at and is one of the most beautiful churches in the Aburrá Valley.

There is also an Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario de Chiquinquirá located in La Estrella, which we also looked at. And there is an Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario de la Pierda located in Medellín.

So, don’t be confused, this article is only about Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario, which is located in Itagüí. Note the above photo is the central nave in the church during mass.

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Itagüí

History of Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Itagüí

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario is dedicated to the Virgin Mary under the invocation of the Rosary.

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario’s history can be traced back to 1743. Originally, the territory of Itagüí was considered part of the parish of Iglesia de Santa Gertrudis, located in Envigado.

However, it was difficult for residents of Itagüí to travel to Envigado due to the scarcity of roads and the difficulty of crossing the Medellín River, especially during the rainy season.

So, Itagüí finally obtained a license to build a church at the end of 1743.  And the parish of Nuestra Señora del Rosario began to form in 1825.

But it wasn’t until February 25, 1832, when Monsignor Fray Mariano Garnica and Dorjuela the bishop of Santa Fe de Antioquia officially issued a decree creating a new parish in Itagüí under the invocation of Our Lady of the Rosary.

In addition, Father Felipe Restrepo was appointed at the first pastor of the parish, who oversaw the parish until his death in 1851. While the church is located in the municipality of Itagüí, it is still considered part of the Archdiocese of Medellín.

The central nave in Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Itagüí

Inside Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Itagüí

Inside the church you will find a beautiful white and cream-colored interior with some gold and burgundy trim. And the church has wooden pews like most churches in Colombia.

The church has three longitudinal naves and two additional lateral naves to the right and left of the main altar.

The lateral nave to the left of the main altar, note the stained-glass skylight

Most notably it has two large stained-glass skylights located in the left- and right-side naves, which I haven’t seen in any other churches in the Medellín area.

One of the stained-glass skylights

The other stained-glass skylight

In addition, the church has several more beautiful stained-glass windows throughout the church.

Stained-glass window in Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario

Another stained-glass window in the church

And another stained-glass window

Another stained-glass window

There are main more stained-glass windows like this one

Furthermore, there are many pieces of religious artwork to be found throughout this church.

Religious artwork in the church

More religious artwork

Additional religious artwork

Another of the many pieces of religious artwork

There are many more pieces of religious artwork like this

And like many other churches in the city, Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Rosario has confessionals on both the right and left sides.

One of the confessionals in the church

How to Get to Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario

The easiest way to get to Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario is via a combination of the Medellín Metro and taxi or bus. To get there you can take Line A of the metro south to the Itagüí metro station.

The church is located about a 5-minute taxi ride from the Itagüí metro station with a minimum fare of 5,500 pesos to Parque de Itagüí where the church is located. There are usually many taxis on the western side of the metro station. Just tell the taxi driver “Parque principal de Itagüí”. It’s also easy to catch taxis at Parque de Itagüí when you return.

There are also buses available at the metro station going to Parque de Itagüí for a fare of only 2,200 pesos.

An alternate way to get to the church is via a taxi from your location. Many taxi drivers in Medellín will know where Parque principal de Itagüí is located. If not, give the driver the address of the church below.

Address: Calle 51 # 49-35, Parque principal de Itagüí

Phone: +57 4 281 0080

Email: rosarioitagui@arqmedellin.co

Hours: The church reportedly has several masses scheduled during the day but the mass schedule isn’t posted in the church. I visited the church at noon when mass was scheduled. We recommend calling to make sure the church will be open when you go.

The Beautiful Churches in Medellín and the Aburrá Valley

In the metropolitan Medellín metro area (Aburrá Valley), there are over 300 Roman Catholic churches. Most notably, there is a complete list of all the churches of the Archdiocese of Medellín.

We have looked at a total of 33 beautiful churches in the Medellín metro area and the Aburrá Valley in a series on this website. And 22 of the churches we have looked at in detail are in Medellín:

1. Catedral Basílica Metropolitana – the main church of the Archdiocese of Medellín and the largest church in the city.
2. Iglesia de La Candelaria – the oldest church in Medellín, which is also a National Monument of Colombia.
3. Iglesia San Antonio and Plaza San Antonio – the church with the largest dome in Medellín located next to Plaza San Antonio with four Fernando Botero sculptures.
4. Iglesia Jesús Nazareno – another of the most beautiful churches in Medellín.
5. Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro – a beautiful Gothic-style church in Medellín.
6. Iglesia del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús – a neo-Gothic-style church located in Barrio Triste in Medellín.
7. Iglesia de San José – a Boroque-style church located in El Centro, Medellín.
8. Iglesia del Señor de las Misericordias – a neo-Gothic-style church located in the Manrique neighborhood of Medellín.
9. Iglesia San José – a Romanesque-style church located next to Parque Poblado in El Poblado.
10. Iglesia de la Veracruz – a colonial church with a history that goes back to 1682, which makes it one of the oldest churches in Medellín.
11. Iglesia de San Ignacio – a beautiful church in El Centro with a Baroque-style exterior and colonial interior.
12. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora – a Roman-style church located next to Parque Belén in Medellín.
13. Iglesia el Calvario – a Romanesque-style church in the Aranjuez comuna in Medellín.
14. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Sufragio – a neo-Romanesque-style church in the Boston barrio in Medellín.
15. Iglesia de San Benito – a neo-Romanesque-style church with a history that traces back to 1678, which make it one of the oldest churches in Medellín.
16. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores – a Neo-Byzantine-style church in the La América comuna in Medellín.
17. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Sagrado Corazón – a beautiful Neo-Gothic-style church in the Buenos Aires comuna in Medellín.
18. Iglesia de Cristo Rey – a beautiful church in the Guayabal comuna of Medellín with many beautiful stained-glass windows.
19. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores – a beautiful Neoclassical-style church in the Robledo comuna of Medellín, which is also a National Monument of Colombia.
20. Iglesia del Cementerio San Pedro – a beautiful church built in 1929 that has some of the most beautiful stained-glass windows found in the churches in Medellín.
21. Iglesia de El Niño Jesús de Praga – a beautiful church in the Villa Hermosa comuna in Medellín.
22. Iglesia San Joaquín – a beautiful church in the Laureles-Estadio comuna in Medellín that is reportedly the second largest church in Medellín.

Also, we have looked at the principal church in each of the other nine municipalities in the Aburrá Valley:

1. Iglesia de Santa Gertrudis – a beautiful church in Envigado located next to Parque Envigado.
2. Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Rosario – a church located in Bello that is arguably the most beautiful church in the Aburrá Valley
3. Iglesia de Santa Ana – a very popular church in Sabaneta located next to Parque Sabaneta.
4. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario – a historic church in Itagüí near Medellín with a history that traces back to 1743.
5. Nuestra Señora Chiquinquirá – a beautiful church in La Estrella with a Neo-Gothic-style.
6. Catedral Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes – a Neoclassical-style church with a history that traces back to 1793 and is located in the Caldas municipality south of Medellín.
7. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Asunción – a Baroque-style church with a history that traces back to 1715 and is located in the Copacabana municipality north of Medellín.
8. Catedral de Nuestra Señora del Rosario – a Neo-Romanesque-style church located in the Girardota municipality northeast of Medellín.
9. Iglesia de San Antonio de Padua – a Neo-Romanesque-style church located in the Barbosa municipality northeast of Medellín.

Also, we looked at two smaller colonial-style churches while looking in detail at two nearby larger churches:

1. Hato Viejo Chapel – a colonial-style church in Bello built between 1772 and 1796. It’s also a National Monument of Colombia. We looked at Hato Viejo Chapel while covering Nuestra Señora del Rosario.
2. Capilla de María Auxiliadora – a colonial-style church in Barbosa built between 1773 and 1776. We looked at Capilla de María Auxiliadora while covering Iglesia de San Antonio de Padua.

In addition, we looked at Las Lajas Sanctuary located in Ipiales, Colombia, which is considered the most beautiful church in Colombia. Also, it’s considered by many to be one of the most beautiful churches in the world.

Looking at Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario from Parque de Itagüí

Parque de Itagüí

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario is located at Parque de Itagüí, which is the principal park in the Itagüí municipality.

The daily life for many locals in Itagüí is typically centered around Parque de Itagüí, which is a one square block plaza that has a number of trees for shade. In addition, this park is surrounded by several small restaurants, bars and shops. 

Parque de Itagüí is considered by locals to be a convenient place in Itagüí to meet up with friends.

Statue of Simón Bolívar in Parque de Itagüí

Also, in the park is a statue of Simón Bolívar, which is common in many of the parks in Colombia. Itagüí is a separate municipality in the Aburrá Valley with a population of over 230,000. And it’s located west of Envigado and Sabaneta and south of Medellín.

The main altar in Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario

The Bottom Line: Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Itagüí

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in Itagüí is not found in any of the 10 English language Colombia travel guidebooks that I have. But it’s worth stopping to see this notable Roman Catholic church if you like old and historic churches.

Several of the most notable and beautiful churches in the Medellín area are located in El Centro. But we have also been looking at notable and beautiful churches in other neighborhoods in the Aburrá Valley like Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Rosario in this article, which is located in the southern Itagüí municipality.

Seems like, in my experience, that most of the travel guidebooks in English about Colombia are missing many of the best places in the cities and pueblos in Colombia.

Consequently, we have covered the beautiful churches in the Medellín metro area in a comprehensive series on this website. Most noteworthy, we did this since a majority of the beautiful and notable churches in the city are missing from the English-language travel guidebooks about Colombia.

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