El Altar
| El Altar | |
|---|---|
| Capak Urcu | |
El Altar in 2006 | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 5,319 m (17,451 ft) |
| Prominence | 2,072 m (6,798 ft) |
| Listing | Ultra List of volcanoes in Ecuador |
| Coordinates | 01°39′48″S 78°24′33″W / 1.66333°S 78.40917°W |
| Geography | |
| Parent range | Andes |
| Geology | |
| Rock age | Pliocene-Pleistocene |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano (extinct) |
| Last eruption | Unknown |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 7 July 1963 by Marino Tremonti, Ferdinando Gaspard and Claudio Zardini |
| Easiest route | rock/ice climb |
El Altar or Capac Urcu (possibly from Kichwa kapak principal, great, important / magnificence, urku mountain) is an extinct volcano on the western side of Sangay National Park in Ecuador, 170 km (110 mi) south of Quito, with a highest point of 5,319 m (17,451 ft). Spaniards named it so because it resembled two nuns and four friars listening to a bishop around a church altar. In older English sources it is also called The Altar.