The Embassy of Italy in San Salvador, in collaboration with the Salvadoran Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has organised the photographic exhibition ‘165 Years of Friendship between Italy and El Salvador’, dedicated to Italy’s contribution to the country’s history and cultural heritage, to mark the 165th anniversary of diplomatic relations (1861–2026).
Housed at the headquarters of the Salvadoran Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Antiguo Cuscatlán, and also available in multimedia format, the exhibition was opened by the Ambassador of Italy, Paolo Emanuele Rozo Sordini, and the Salvadoran Deputy Minister for the Diaspora and Human Mobility, Patricia Godínez.
The route is divided into four sections: ‘Faith and heritage’, ‘Historical memory and monumental art’, ‘Education and values’ and ‘Cooperation and engineering’. Through images of churches, monuments, schools and infrastructure, the exhibition illustrates how Italian art, traditions and expertise have become part of El Salvador’s heritage.
The illustrated works include the Church of El Calvario and the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, both linked to the work of the Italian architect and engineer Augusto Cesare Baratta del Vecchio; the Salesian College of Santa Cecilia, which embodies the educational tradition of Don Bosco; and the memorial to Saint Óscar Romero, created by the Italian sculptor Paolo Borghi. The exhibition also features the mausoleums at the Los Ilustres cemetery, the Cuscatlán Bridge and the restoration work carried out on the Church of Santa Cruz de Roma in Panchimalco.
During the opening ceremony, reference was also made to the Italian Government’s commitment – through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation – to the restoration and revitalisation of the historic centres of San Salvador and San Miguel.
The exhibition is one of the initiatives organised by the Embassy as part of the 26th Week of the Italian Language in the World, dedicated to the theme Lingua geniale: ideare, progettare, creare con l’italiano (Brilliant Language: Conceiving, Designing, and Creating with Italian). The exhibits on display explore the links between language, art and creativity, highlighting the contribution made by different generations of Italians to the country’s cultural life and the enduring bond of friendship and cooperation.
