Initially it was called Paseo de la Carbona by ViceroyManuel de Amat y Junyent, its main promoter.[1] The project included a waterfall, which was modeled on an existing water feature in Narbonne.[2]
However, the neighbors opposed the big project due to the possibility of running out of water for their crops and personal needs.[1] Thus, although the work was unfinished, it was inaugurated in 1772.[1] From the beginning, there were problems with the water supply, which came through a ditch.[1]
Since the mid-19th century and for several decades, a tram station and its offices used to operate on the Paseo de Aguas.[3][4]
Post 19th century
In 1938 the archery was restored.[1] In the 1950s, the site was a run-down municipal garden that was known for being the scene of the San Juan festival.[5]
The Paseo de Aguas constitutes a boulevard of the Jirón Madera. It is connected by the Hulgayoc street with the Alameda de los Descalzos and by the Alameda de Bobos with the Acho bullring, which are also viceregal works built in the 18th century.[8]
The promenade has a larger central arch and a sequence of lower arches on both sides crowned by a succession of oculi and pinnacles.[1]
In popular culture
In his book Peruvian Traditions, Ricardo Palma records that his contemporaries invented the myth that Amat built the Paseo de Aguas "just to flatter his lady", the singer and actress Micaela Villegas.[9][10] In 1781, she acquired a house-mill located between the Paseo and the Alameda de los Descalzos.[1]
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