Polco

Polco lies in the dry plains east of the Andean ranges, beside an old road between La Rioja and Córdoba. Archaeological finds attest to indigenous occupation of the area before the Spanish conquest. By 1596, the people of Polco, Patquía and Guayuma had been placed under an encomienda, whose holder claimed their labour and tribute. A chapel beside the Polco reservoir is recorded in 1783, giving the settlement a place of worship on the road across the plains.