The church was built in 1665, with construction taking two years.[1] An image of Our Lady of the Waters was donated to the church by Alonso Cortés de Monroy during the late 17th century.[2] On January 29, 1711, Fernando Hurtado y Quesada, the son of the Count of Cartago, stole the ciborium containing the hosts and hid them under an orange tree next to an acequia in the Alameda de los Descalzos, eventually being found.[3] To commemorate the controversial event, Viceroy Diego Ladrón de Guevara ordered that a church be built on the site of the discovery.[4] The new church, finished in 1716, was named after Saint Liberata.[4]