[2] The Spanish conquistadors to the Bogotá savanna, the missionary Friar Domingo de las Casas celebrated the first Holy Mass on August 6, 1538,[3] in a modest chapel of mud and straw roofs,[4] and before a banner that rests on the cathedral, in the place where the first stones were laid for the construction of a church.

In 1553, at the initiative of Friar Juan de los Barrios, the decision was made to build a cathedral with mud and brick walls in the same place as the current cathedral, according to the provisions of the Cabildo, for which a public tender was called that assigned the works to Baltasar Díaz and Pedro Vásquez, associated with the bricklayer Juan Rey, with a budget of 1,000 pesos.

At the beginning of the 19th century by appointment made by Canon Fernando Caycedo y Flórez, Metropolitan Archbishop of Bogotá, the Capuchin friar Friar Domingo de Petrés was appointed as architect for the reconstruction of the cathedral, who was widely influenced by the Neoclassical trend prevailing in that time of history and that determined the style of the reconstruction of the church, Fray Domingo, of Spanish origin, son of a mason, who arrived in Santafé de Bogotá in 1792 to exercise his profession as an architect, beginning the work of the new cathedral on February 11, 1807.

[4] The Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of Bogotá was recognized with the honorary title of Primate of Colombia by Pope Leo XIII, through the Decree of the Consistorial Congregation of November 7, 1902.

Its location corresponds to the Episcopal Pastoral Zone of the Immaculate Conception, forming the parish of the Cathedral in the neighborhood of La Candelaria.

[10] The current building of the parish house on the corner of calle 11 with carrera 6 dates from 1759 and was declared a national monument through the resolution 191 of March 1, 2005.

Its framework is complemented by the Palace of Justice on the north side, the Palacio Liévano (headquarters of the Mayor's Office of Bogotá) to the west and the Capitolio Nacional to the south.

The main door, made in the 16th century, is 7.20 meters high by 3.60 wide, is adorned by two independent pilasters in the form of fluted columns of the Ionic order, whose capitals end in the front cornice, and It features knockers, bolts, studs and fittings in Spanish cast bronze and five salamanders in solvier.

Continuing east along the south nave, we find the Chapel de San José, which contains a masonry altar of composite order, designed by Petrés.

To the west of the chapel is the painting "Our Lady of Sorrows", oil on canvas from the 17th century and by an anonymous author, Saint Peter bears the second title of the Metropolitan Basilica Cathedral.

On the western side we find the painting "Appearance of Our Lady to San Simón Stock", oil on canvas from the 17th century and by an anonymous author.

On the western wall, a marble monument contains the ashes of the Venezuelan Pedro Gual and a plaque commemorates Archbishop Fernando Caicedo y Flores, complemented by a picture of the Creed of Santiago and the statue of Mary Immaculate, which was on the main altar for three centuries.

It is made up of an Ionic altar with the colonial painting "Saint James Apostle in the Battle of Clavijo", oil on canvas by Gregorio Vásquez de Arce y Ceballos.

The main altarpiece is dated 1610 by an unknown author, represents the invocation of Our Lady of Sorrows of El Topo, patron saint of the canons of Bogotá, in which the virgin appears leaning over the head of the dead Jesus.

Made in 1906 and contains an Ionic altar and three niches: the left one with the Magdalena, the central one with Our Lady and the right one with Saint John the Evangelist, where the tomb of Juan Martín de Sarratea, superintendent of the Mint House, is located.

It was originally the chapel of Saint Anne because of the painting by Gaspar Figueroa and it contains an Ionic altar, a Quitoan statue of Virgin of Mercy in the central niche and the tomb of Eulogio Tamayo (treasurer and dean of the cathedral in 1887, who during the Concordat, requested the legal status of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts).

After the Chapel of San José is the side entrance of the church or "false door", which has on its outside a coat of arms of Spain carved in stone and on the inside two ancient Italian style paintings.

The instrument underwent a restoration, which had a value of 2,515 million pesos, which was financed by the Colombian Ministry of Culture, the National Tourism Fund (Fontur) and the Archdiocese of Bogotá.