Nicolás Mascardi, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Nicolás Mascardi

Italian missionary

Date of Birth: 05-Sep-1624

Place of Birth: Sarzana, Liguria, Italy

Date of Death: 15-Feb-1674

Profession: missionary

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Nicolás Mascardi (Spanish pronunciation: [niko'las mas'ka?ði]; Rome, 1625 – † Patagonia, 1673) was an Italian Jesuit priest and missionary in South America in the 17th century.
He arrived to Chile in 1651.
While active in Araucanía he gained notoriety for the exorcisms he practised among the Mapuches.In 1662 Mascardi went on an expedition south of Chiloé Archipelago, where Jesuits had been established for about fifty years, arriving to Guaitecas Archipelago where he built a church.In 1669 he crossed the Andes from Chiloé Archipelago and established a mission on the shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake which lasted until his death.
From the mission he and his fellow Jesuits engaged in missionary activity among the Poyas, Pehuenches and Puelches.
He died in 1673 after being attacked by native Poyas during one of his exploration trips in the southern Andes.
Villa Mascardi and Mascardi Lake in present-day Argentina are named after him.