Goddess Ikake
Sergio Umbria
We must bear in mind that the exact date
It is not easy to establish its foundation; in
First place, because in this place the cuicas already
They had founded a city that awakened the
Admiration of the first Spaniards who arrived
To her; Second, because this population
Indigenous was discovered in 1548 by Diego Ruiz de
Vallejo, commissioned by Juan de Villegas, who thought
To found a Spanish town right there, but
Circumstances beyond his control prevented him from doing so
Third, because between 1556 and 1558, Diego
García de Paredes founded Trujillo here, who later
It was destroyed by the Indians and, fourth and last
Because in September 1559 Francisco Ruiz
He rebuilt the city, named after his people
Natal Mirabel, which, finally, returned to take its
Aboriginal name of Escuque that, as its name says
Name in the Cuica language, means Town of
Clouds and that, as mentioned above, caused
The admiration of the first Spaniards who arrived there
The chronicler of the Indies Juan de Castellanos attests to this in
The third Elegy of him, when he says that
The houses of greatness so mighty
So many and by such order and concert
That nothing like this was seen
Before this description of the
Population had described the temple and
Speaking of the image that was venerated in it
Icaque was said and was a goddess
What a bundle they had retracted
In the house of three spacious ships
Of great and minor frequented
She made a generous party
(At times and for days) marked