Built over the ruins of an Inca palace — Pumapungo translates as 'door of the puma'. One of Ecuador's finest pre-Columbian collections, with ethnographic rooms and a garden of Andean plants. The outdoor ruins are best in the morning light before the city fully wakes. The museum and archaeological park stand at Calle Larga and Huayna Cápac, southeast of Cuenca's historic centre. The site was once a ceremonial centre of ancient Tomebamba, built over the Cañari settlement of Guapondélig after the Inca conquest in the late fifteenth century. The Tomebamba archaeological room presents the history of Azuay and Ecuador through the Cañari, Inca, and colonial periods, while the park retains agricultural terraces among its archaeological remains. The museum also holds the national ethnography reserve and room.
Centro Histórico, Cuenca, Ecuador