Courtesy Wikipedia Commons
The Zócalo of Mexico City is the common name for the main central square. It has been a gathering place since Aztec times- having been the site of Mexica (Aztec) ceremonies at the original temple complex. It has seen the swearing in of Spanish viceroys, royal proclamations, military parades, Independence ceremonies and modern religious events-even political demonstrations. The Zocalo and surrounding blocks have played a central role in the city for almost 700 years. The site is just one block southwest of the Templo Mayor which, according to Aztec legend and mythology, was considered the center of the universe.
Photo courtesy wikipedia commons
Above- The National Palace. This site has been a palace since the Aztec times-being the site of Moctezumas II palace. Much of the current palace’s building materials are from that original original palace.It is a vast building with much of it closed to the public.
Above-Note how the building is sinking at either end. This is not the effect of a wide angle lens !
Above-There are gardens within the inner courtyards.
In the stairwell is a huge mural by Diego Rivera depicting the history of Mexico from 1521 to 1930. These murals were painted between 1929 and 1935 titled “The Epic of the Mexican People”. Rivera’s creation of a Mexican identity through his art helped to continue the reform that began with the Mexican Revolution of 1910.
Below- In the middle and largest panel, the Spanish Conquest is depicted with all it’s ugliness, such as rape and torture.
The American and French invasions are represented as well as the Reform period and the Revolution. The left-hand panel is dedicated to early and mid-20th century, criticizing the status quo and depicting a Marxist kind of utopia, with Rockefeller, William Durant, J.P. Morgan, Cornelius Vanderbilt and Andrew Mellon as well as Karl Marx. This part of the mural also includes Frida Kahlo, Diego’s wife.This mural reflects Diego’s own personal views about Mexico’s history and the indigenous people of the country in particular.
Beyond the stairwell along the galleries are even more murals by Rivera illustrating the long history of the indigenous peoples.
Above the Parliamentario.
Both the United States and Mexico have many things in common. A revolutionary war. An Eagle as a symbol, and the all seeing eye of Horus.
Above–Moneda street so named because the mint once was located here and runs along the northern edge of the Palace.
As one looks along any street in the historic center one cannot help but see tilting buildings and not straight lines caused by subsidence.
Below– The Cathedral occupies the northern edge of the Zocalo.
The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven is the largest cathedral in the Americas. It is situated atop the former Aztec sacred precinct near the Templo Mayor on the northern side of the Zocalo. The Spanish conquerors used the stones from the destroyed temple of the god of war Huitzilopochtli-principal deity of the Mexicas, to build the church. The cathedral was built over time from 1573 to 1813.
Below-The cathedral is home to two of the largest 18th-century organs in the Americas.
These photos do not do the space justice. It is really an elegant soaring high space not out of place and could be in Spain.
One does not get the sense of scale. Humans are quite small within it.
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Around the corner and down the street is another (of many) original churches. This one dedicated to Saint Francis. It is all that remains of the original monastery complex of the first twelve Franciscan monks headed by Martín de Valencia who came to Mexico to evangelize in New Spain. In the early colonial period, this was one of the largest and most influential monasteries in Mexico City. Built on the site of Moctezumas zoo which apparently had 600 keepers ! The church standing today is the third to be built on the site. The first two sunk into the soft soil underneath Mexico City and had to be torn down. This church was built between 1710 and 1716.
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All this sightseeing makes one hungry so across the street from the saint Francis church is ….
Above photo courtesy Wikipedia commons.
La Casa de los Azulejos or “The House of Tiles” an ex 18th-century palace built by the Count del Valle de Orizaba family. The facade is covered by blue and white tiles from Puebla state. The palace was in private hands until near the end of the 19th century and changed hands several times before being bought by the Sanborn brothers who were Americans. In the early part of the twentieth century they started a soda fountain and drug and department store business in Mexico and have developed today into one of the best-recognized restaurant chains in Mexico. Currently owned by Carlos Slim-this old house today serves as their flagship restaurant.
The House Of Tiles has hosted painters, writers, actors, poets and revolutionaries. It was a symbol of a cosmopolitan atmosphere in the first half of the 20th century.
Below-The inner courtyard is now glassed over and provides a large dining room
There are two large murals in the interior. The first one (above and below) is a peacock mural by Romanian painter Pacologue done in 1919.
In the main stairway is one of the earliest works by José Clemente Orozco titled Omniscience and done in 1925. The three symbolic figures appearing in it represent masculine values, with their feminine counterparts and Grace presiding over them both.
Below- Upstairs even more stately rooms
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Not in the Zocalo or the center of town but some miles north is The Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
According to the Catholic tradition, it is the site where Saint Juan Diego- a poor peasant wandering the hills met the Virgin of Guadalupe in December 1531 and received the iconic image of the Lady of Guadalupe. The sacred site was already devoted to a Pre-Columbian temple for Tonantzin Coatlaxopeuh, an important mother goddess.
A vision of the Virgin appeared to Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac. He was told to tell the local Bishop what he had seen but was not believed. He went back to the hill and the Virgin then told him to collect rose petals from the bushes growing on top of the hill, even though it was December. Juan then went back to the Bishop and unfolded a cloak of rose petals to the now believing Bishop and also the cloak itself was now imprinted with the image of the Virgin we see today. Below-The new Basilica houses the original or cloak of Juan Diego which holds the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
The basilica is visited by several million people every year, especially around 12 December, Our Lady of Guadalupe’s Feast day.
