Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores in Robledo

Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores (Church of Our Lady of Sorrows) is another of the notable and historic Roman Catholic churches in the Medellín metro area.

The church with Neoclassical architecture is located next to a small park in Robledo.

Note that Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores is a popular church name in Medellín as three other churches in the metro area have the same name.

A reader recommended we look at this church due to its historical value.

History of the Church

Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores is a Roman Catholic church, which is dedicated to the Virgin Mary under the invocation of Our Lady of Sorrows.

In 1806, west of Medellín in a small town called San Ciro, a small church named Nuestra Senora de los Dolores was built.  This area is now called Barrio San Germán, which was later named the village of Anah.

In 1880, the small town of San Ciro was destroyed along with the church in an avalanche. Plans were quickly established to rebuild the church in El Tablazo, which later was named Robledo.

Construction of the church started in 1883 with a design my Manuel Arenas. In 1895, Ruben Burgos Restrepo was contracted to build the wooden altar for the church. The church opened in the early part of the twentieth century.

Because of its historical and architectural value, the church was declared a National Monument of Colombia on December 15, 2000.

Inside the Church

The interior of Iglesia San José in El Poblado is white with gold trim. The church is beautiful inside with a number of religious artwork pieces.

The church has confessionals found along the left side of the church.

Note that Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores in Robledo is somewhat smaller than most the other churches we have looked at in this church series.

How to Get There

Iglesia de Nuestra Senora de los Dolores is located on Calle 65 part way up a hill in Robledo next to a small park. This is part of the Medellín metroplex where many foreigners typically don’t go.

The church is not within walking distance to a Metro station, which is unlike other churches in this series.

The church is located about a 6,000-peso taxi ride from the Floresta Metro station, which is the nearest metro station. The church is also located within walking distance to Universidad de Antioquia.

The church doesn’t have hours that it is open posted so it is recommended to call to make sure the church is open if you would like to see the interior.

My Colombian wife is from Robledo and I have driven past this church several times when the doors were closed during the day.

Note to Readers

This is the fifteenth notable church in Medellín we have looked at in a series on this website looking at the most notable churches in the metropolitan area.

We previously looked at 14 churches:

1. Iglesia de la Veracruz
2. Iglesia Jesús Nazareno
3. Catedral Basílica Metropolitana
4. Iglesia de La Candelaria
5. Iglesia San Jose
6. Iglesia del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús
7. Iglesia San Antonio
8. Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro
9. Iglesia de San Ignacio
10. Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Rosario (in Bello)
11. Iglesia de Santa Ana (in Sabaneta)
12. Iglesia de Santa Gertrudis (in Envigado)
13. Iglesia de Nuestra Señora (in Belén)
14. Iglesia San José (in El Poblado)

The first nine churches we looked at in Medellín were all in La Candelaria (El Centro) and all could be seen in a few hours time. Most of the churches in El Centro are located within one to seven blocks of a metro station.

It would be possible to combine a tour of several of the notable churches in La Candelaria (El Centro) along with visits to Museo de Antioquia and Plaza Botero.

The majority of the notable churches in Medellín are located in El Centro, but we have looked at some in other neighborhoods and nearby cities too.

This is the last church we plan to look at in this series, but there are many others in the city. In the Archdiocese of Medellín, there are over 200 churches, a complete list can be found here.

We covered the notable churches in Medellín in a series on this website as we have found that most of the beautiful churches in the city are unfortunately missing from the travel guidebooks of Colombia.

The churches we have looked at in this series are some of the most famous and notable churches in the city.  Several of the churches we looked at have even been declared National Monuments of Colombia.