TheCercado de Lima ('Walled Lima'),Damero de Pizarro ('Pizarro's Checkerboard'), orLima Cuadrada ('Squared Lima') is an area of thehistoric center ofLima (capital ofPeru) located within theold walls of the city.[1]
The area of the Cercado de Lima corresponds to the original layout of the city. Its current boundaries within the city are theRímac River to the north,Abancay Avenue to the east,Colmena Avenue to the south andTacna Avenue to the west.[2][3]
Its name derives from it being the oldest and most central part of the city and because its urban layout maintains the classic Spanish style of streets and perpendicular avenues that form homogeneously square blocks.[4]
The area contains the main historical monuments of the city and several of the public buildings of thegovernment of Peru including theGovernment Palace and theMetropolitan Cathedral of Lima.[5]