Garden Courtyard at San Francisco El Grande, Antigua Guatemala

The Convento de San Francisco el Grande was established by Franciscan friars in 1579 and became one of the largest monastic complexes in colonial Central America, housing a church, cloisters, and schools around a series of courtyard gardens. The 1773 earthquake that leveled much of Antigua left the convent in ruins, and the site saw little restoration after the colonial capital relocated to present-day Guatemala City. Hermano Pedro de Betancourt, canonized in 2002 as Guatemala's first saint, served at the convent and is entombed in its adjoining church, drawing pilgrims to the grounds to this day. Conservation efforts in recent decades have stabilized portions of the stonework and reopened the gardens to visitors.