The Franciscan missions of the Sierra Gorda of Querétaro are five missions built in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

between 1750 and 1760. The foundation of the missions is attributed to

Junípero Serra Saint Junípero Serra Ferrer (; ; November 24, 1713August 28, 1784), popularly known simply as Junipero Serra, was a Spanish Roman Catholic, Catholic priest and missionary of the Franciscan Order. He is credited with establishing the Francis ...

, who also founded the most important missions in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. They were declared a

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

in 2003. They are an example of an architectural and stylistic unity with a tempera painting that is one of the best examples of popular New Spain Baroque. According to the criteria to which the UNESCO inscription as a World Heritage Site refers, the missions are testimony to the important exchange of values during the

colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

process, both in the center and north of Mexico and in the west of what currently occupies the territory of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Region

The

Sierra Gorda The Sierra Gorda () is an Ecoregion, ecological region centered on the northern third of the List of states of Mexico, Mexican state of Querétaro and extending into the neighboring states of Guanajuato, Hidalgo (state), Hidalgo and San Luis Po ...

is an ecological region centered on the northern third of the state of

Querétaro Querétaro, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Querétaro, is one of the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Querétaro, 18 municipalities. Its capital city is Querétaro Cit ...

and extending into the neighboring states of

Guanajuato Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...

Hidalgo Hidalgo may refer to: People * Hidalgo (nobility), members of the Spanish nobility * Hidalgo (surname) Places Mexico :''Most, if not all, named for Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla (1753–1811)'' * Hidalgo (state), in central Mexico * Hidalgo, Coah ...

and

San Luis Potosí San Luis Potosí, officially the Free and Sovereign State of San Luis Potosí, is one of the 32 states which compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 59 municipalities and is named after its capital city, San Luis Potosí. It ...

. The region is on a branch of the

Sierra Madre Oriental The Sierra Madre Oriental () is a mountain range in northeastern Mexico. The Sierra Madre Oriental is part of the American Cordillera, a chain of mountain ranges (cordillera) that consists of an almost continuous sequence of mountain ranges that ...

mountain range and consists of a series of mountain chains that run north to southeast. Within Querétaro, the ecosystem extends from the center of the state starting in parts of

San Joaquín San Joaquín (Spanish for Saint Joachim) is a commune of Chile located in Santiago Province, Santiago Metropolitan Region. It is part of Greater Santiago. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, San ...

and

Cadereyta de Montes Cadereyta de Montes () is a city and municipality in the Mexican state of Querétaro. The municipality is the second most extensive in the state. The city was founded in 1640, and received its current name in two stages: first in 1642 in honor o ...

municipalities and covering all of the municipalities of

Peñamiller Peñamiller is a town in Peñamiller Municipality in the Mexican state of Querétaro. It is part of the Sierra Gorda region with about eighty percent of the territory belonging to the Sierra Gorda Biosphere of Querétaro. The municipality is on ...

Pinal de Amoles Pinal de Amoles is a town located in Pinal de Amoles Municipality in the state of Querétaro in central Mexico. It is part of the Sierra Gorda region which stretches over northern Querétaro into Guanajuato, Hidalgo and San Luis Potosí, with 88% ...

Jalpan de Serra Jalpan de Serra () is a city in Jalpan de Serra Municipality located in the north of the Mexican state of Querétaro. It is located in the heart of an important ecological zone called the Sierra Gorda. It is also the site two of five Franciscan ...

Landa de Matamoros Landa de Matamoros is a town in Landa de Matamoros Municipality located in the northeast of the Mexican state of Querétaro in central Mexico. It is part of the Sierra Gorda region, which consists of rugged mountains, canyons and wide diversity ...

and Arroyo Seco, for a total of 250km2 of territory. All of the Sierra Gorda is marked by very rugged terrain, which includes canyons and steep mountains. Altitudes range from just 300 meters above sea level in the Río Santa María Canyon in Jalpan to 3,100 masl at the Cerro de la Pingüica in Pinal de Amoles. The micro-environments of the region range from conifer forests, oak forests, mostly found on mountain peaks, banana and sugar cane fields in the deeper canyons. On the east side, there are deciduous forests. On the west side, bordering the

Mexican Plateau The Central Mexican Plateau, also known as the Mexican Altiplano (), is a large arid-to-semiarid plateau that occupies much of northern and central Mexico. Averaging above sea level, it extends from the United States border in the north to the T ...

, there are desert and semi desert conditions, with a variety of cactus and arid scrub brush. Among its features are the peaks associated with the

Sierra Alta de Hidalgo Sierra (Spanish for "mountain range" or " mountain chain" and " saw", from Latin '' serra'') may refer to the following: Places Mountains and mountain ranges * Sierra de Juárez, a mountain range in Baja California, Mexico * Sierra de las Ni ...

, the pine forests of Zamorano, the Extorax Canyon and the slopes of the Huazmazonta, the inter-mountain valleys where the five missions are found and the rolling hills leading into

La Huasteca La Huasteca is a geographical and cultural region located partially along the Gulf of Mexico and including parts of the states of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Puebla, Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí, Querétaro and Guanajuato. It is roughly defined as the ar ...

. The wide variations of altitude and rainfall favor a wide variety of flora and wildlife.

Foundation

Although the mission of

Jalpan Jalpan may refer to one of two municipalities in Mexico: * Jalpan, Puebla * Jalpan de Serra, Querétaro {{geodis ...

was founded in 1750 before

arrived in the region, he is credited with building the five main missions in the area and completing the evangelization of the local population. In reality, the missions were built by the

Pame people The north Pame, or Xi'iuy (alternate spelling: Xi'úi, Xi'ui, Xi'oi, or Xiyui), as they refer to themselves, the south Pame, or Ñáhu, Nyaxu (in Hidalgo (state), Hidalgo), and the Pame in Querétaro or Re Nuye Eyyä, are an Indigenous people of cen ...

, under the direction of various

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

friars, including José Antonio de Murguía in San Miguel Conca, Juan Crispi in Tilaco, in Tancoyol, and Miguel de la Campa de Landa. However, the vision for the construction of the missions belonged to Serra, as he imagined a kind of

utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', which describes a fictiona ...

based on Franciscan principles, Serra put a firm missionary attitude that consisted in the accompaniment and understanding of its social problems, in the knowledge of their hunger and their language; Serra founded cooperatives, supported and strengthened their organization and production capacities, motivated the distribution of land and imposed doctrinal tasks in the Pame language. It was a missionary task of great dimensions and profound consequences from the human point of view and whose results are today appreciable in the Baroque syncretism that it exhibits in all the missions.

History

Although there had been some city building in this area during the Pre Classic era, with heights between the 6th and 10th centuries, these cities had been abandoned long before the Spanish arrived in the 16th century. At this time, the native peoples of the region were nomadic hunter gathers, such as the Pames,

Ximpece The Ximpece are an Indigenous people of Mexico who were a semi-nomadic ethnic group of Chichimecas who lived among the Pame and the Jonaz. The National Commission for the Development of Indigenous Peoples reported that "about 60,000 Amerindians ...

Guachichil The Guachichil, Cuauchichil, or Quauhchichitl are an exonym for an Indigenous people of Mexico. Prior to European contact, they occupied the most extensive territory of all the Indigenous Chichimeca tribes in pre-Columbian central Mexico. The ...

s and Jonaz, generally referred to together as the

Chichimeca Chichimeca () is the name that the Nahua peoples of Mexico generically applied to nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples who were established in present-day Bajío region of Mexico. Chichimeca carried the same meaning as the Roman term "barbarian" tha ...

s. In addition, there were also groups of Otomis and

Huasteca La Huasteca is a geographical and cultural region located partially along the Gulf of Mexico and including parts of the states of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Puebla, Hidalgo (state), Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí, Querétaro and Guanajuato. It is roughly d ...

to be found. The Spanish dominated the far west and the far east of the Sierra Gorda (today in the states of Guanajuato and Hidalgo), but could not dominate the center in what is now Querétaro. This is because the rugged terrain and fierce resistance, especially by the Jonaz. Efforts to dominate the region included evangelization efforts, many of which failed before the mid 18th century. During the 16th and 17th century, there were attempts to evangelize the Sierra Gorda of Querétaro by the Augustinians,

s and Dominicans. However, almost all of these missions were never completed or were destroyed soon after they were built by the indigenous communities. The best known example is the Bucareli Mission is located in the community of Puerto de Tejamanil in the municipality of

. The mission was founded in 1797 by Franciscan Juan Guadalupe Soriano for evangelization of the local Jonaz people. The full name of the mission is the Purísima Concepción de Bucarelí. It was never finished with only part of the monastery, the mines and the church visible. On 4 February, mass in honor of

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone ( 1181 – 3 October 1226), known as Francis of Assisi, was an Italians, Italian Mysticism, mystic, poet and Friar, Catholic friar who founded the religious order of the Franciscans. Inspired to lead a Chris ...

is performed here, in a small chapel with still remains, although there is no roof in any part of the complex. The mission was completely abandoned during the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution () was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from 20 November 1910 to 1 December 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It saw the destruction of the Federal Army, its ...

in 1914 and construction officially suspended in 1926. In 1740, the colonial government decided to exterminate indigenous resistance here to secure trade routes to Guanajuato and Zacatecas. This was accomplished by José de Escandón, whose expedition culminated in the Battle of Media Luna, defeating the Jonaz and Ximpeces. The military pacification of the area by José de Escandón in the 1740s allowed for the building of permanent missions in the heart of the Sierra Gorda. However, the five Franciscans missions accredited to

were built in Pame territory, as these people were more accepting of Spanish domination. The Spanish decided to burn original Pame villages and resettle the population around missions for better control. Those who did not submit either committed suicide or went to live in the mountains. The placement of the missions had the purpose of dividing the heart of the Sierra Gorda and to open roads into

. Junípero Serra spent eight years on the project of building the missions until 1770, when a number of historical events, including the expulsion of the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

s, forced the abandonment of the missions. Serra moved onto California. From then until the late 20th century, the complexes suffered abandonment, deterioration and damage. This was especially true during the Mexican Revolution with many churches in the region were sacked and a number of portal figures on these Franciscan churches became "decapitated" by the fighting. In the 1980s, a group from the

Xilitla Xilitla is a municipality () and town in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí in the Huasteca region of Mexico. The town is located at The municipality has an area of and had a population of 51,498 in 2010 of whom 6,576 lived in town of Xilitl ...

office of INAH got lost in the area and came upon one of the missions. The find led to efforts to save the missions and culminated with their declaration as a

in 2003. Initial restoration work to the structure and exterior of the mission churches was begun in the 1980s. Between 1991 and 1997, interior work on altars, choirs, organs and paintings was done. Further work was sponsored by the state between 1997 and 2002, which included that on surrounding plazas and monuments. Restoration costs for the Tancoyol mission alone were over three million pesos by 2008. The effort to inscribe the missions as a World Heritage Site began in 2000 by a group of Mexican intellectuals including Dr. Miguel León Portilla. The effort took two and a half years but was ultimately successful in 2003, when it was added during the 27th meeting of the World Heritage Committee. The five missions are promoted by the state tourism authority as the Ruta de las Misiones, (Mission Route).

Architecture

The main characteristic of these temples is the rich decoration of the main doors, this decoration is called "

New Spanish Baroque New Spanish Baroque, also known as Mexican Baroque, refers to Baroque art developed in the entire territories that once formed the New Spain, Viceroyalty of New Spain. During this period, artists of New Spain experimented with expressive, contras ...

" or "mestizo Baroque", according to the INAH. The rich decoration is mainly aimed at teaching the new religion to the indigenous peoples, but unlike the Baroque of the temples and works further south, the indigenous influence is obvious. The idea of Serra was to demonstrate a mixture of cultures instead of a complete conquest. One of them was the use of the colors red, orange and yellow, as well as pastel shades, and of sacred native figures, such as the rabbit and the jaguar. The temples have a single

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, covered by a

barrel vault A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault, wagon vault or wagonhead vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve (or pair of curves, in the case of a pointed barrel vault) along a given distance. The curves are ...

, but each one has its own peculiarities, especially in the

portal Portal may refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * ''Portal'' (series), a series of video games developed by Valve ** ''Portal'' (video game), a 2007 video game, the first in the series ** '' Portal 2'', the 2011 sequel ** '' Portal Stori ...

s. Serra spent eleven years in the Sierra Gorda, before moving to the north, around 1760. The missions established in Querétaro would be the first in a long series of missions that would be established in what is now southern California. The Sierra Gorda missions have unique characteristics in

, both for their conceptions of

floor plan In architecture and building engineering, a floor plan is a technical drawing to scale, showing a view from above, of the relationships between rooms, spaces, traffic patterns, and other physical features at one level of a structure. Dimensio ...

s and elevations. On their facades they present a series of very original compositions based on high-quality decorative elements and ingenious design; its forms are armed with partitions covered with stucco, made of quicklime burned on site and colored with earth. Despite the fact that these missions were established in the 18th century, in them some basic elements of the religious architecture of the

Mendicant orders Mendicant orders are primarily certain Catholic Church, Catholic religious orders that have vowed for their male members a lifestyle of vow of poverty, poverty, traveling, and living in urban areas for purposes of preacher, preaching, Evangelis ...

of the 16th century are discovered. The architecture of these missions obeys the so-called "moderate trace" program that was implemented in the 16th century and accepted by the

, Augustinian and Dominican orders; and that they applied in the convent-fortresses. The missions have what is called a

Capilla posa Capilla may refer to: *A medieval Spanish term for a chapel *Capilla, Badajoz, Spain *Capillas, Castile and León, Spain *Capillas District, Peru *La Capilla, Colombia People * Doug Capilla (born 1952), American baseball player * Eneko Capilla (bo ...

, one of the architectural solutions used in the monastery complexes of

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...

in the 16th century, consisting of four quadrangular vaulted buildings located at the ends of the atrium outside them. Like the Capilla abierta, it is a unique solution and a contribution of Spanish-American colonial art to universal art given its originality and the plastic and stylistic resources used in its ornamentation. There are several theories about its function. It has been proposed that, following the processional path, the Capillas posas were used to pose or rest the Blessed Sacrament when it was carried in procession through the atrium. File:DoubleHeadedEagleConcá.JPG,

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

double headed eagle on the facade of the Concá mission File:IntactCapillaPosaTancoyol.JPG,

at the Mission of Nuestra Señora de la Luz de Tancoyol File:Atriumcapillasposas.JPG, Atrium and capillas posas in the Mission of San Francisco de Asís del Valle de Tilaco

Missions

The Santiago de Jalpan mission was established before the arrival of Junípero Serra in 1744, but Serra was in charge of building the mission complex that stands today from 1751 to 1758, the first to be built. It is dedicated to

James the Greater James the Great (Koine Greek, Koinē Greek: Ἰάκωβος, romanized: ''Iákōbos''; Syriac language, Aramaic: ܝܥܩܘܒ, romanized: ''Yaʿqōḇ''; died AD 44) was one of the Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles of Jesus. Accordi ...

, the first evangelist. This complex is situated in the center of the modern town in front of the main plaza and formed by an atrium,

cloister A cloister (from Latin , "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open Arcade (architecture), arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle (architecture), quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cat ...

, pilgrim portal and church, with a chapel annex on the left side. The original atrium wall was lost, but reconstructed in the same style, with three portals and inverted arches. The main features of the ornate portal on the facade are

Our Lady of the Pillar Our Lady of the Pillar () is the name given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the context of the traditional belief that Mary, while living in Jerusalem, supernaturally appeared to the Apostle James the Greater in AD 40, AD 40 while he was pre ...

and the

Virgin of Guadalupe Our Lady of Guadalupe (), also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe (), is a Catholic Church, Catholic Titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with four Marian apparitions to Juan Diego and one to his uncle, J ...

, both with

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area that begins in the southern part of North America and extends to the Pacific coast of Central America, thus comprising the lands of central and southern Mexico, all of Belize, Guatemala, El S ...

n connections, as well as a double headed eagle, meant to symbolize the blending of the two cultures. The facade is elaborately done in stucco and stone work, with ochre of the

pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...

s contrasting with the yellow of many of the decorative details. Much of the detail is vegetative, along with small angels and eagles. European elements include images of saints such as

Saint Dominic Saint Dominic, (; 8 August 1170 – 6 August 1221), also known as Dominic de Guzmán (), was a Castilians, Castilian Catholic priest and the founder of the Dominican Order. He is the patron saint of astronomers and natural scientists, and he a ...

and

and the Franciscan coat of arms. Inside the door, there are the images of Saints Peter and

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

. Native elements include a double-headed Mexican eagle devouring a serpent. On the upper left, there is an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe on the upper left, the

. These are the virgin images of Mexico and Spain respectively. This statue is said to have been taken by a general at the end of the 19th century. It was replaced by a more modern clock. Inside, the

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, usually dome-like structure on top of a building often crowning a larger roof or dome. Cupolas often serve as a roof lantern to admit light and air or as a lookout. The word derives, via Ital ...

of the Jalpan mission contains scenes of the appearance of the Virgin of Guadalupe. File:NaveMissionJalpan2.JPG, Inside the mission. File:PortalJalpanChurch.JPG, Main facade. File:BellTowerMissionJalpan.JPG, Bell tower. File:CupolaMissionJalpan.JPG, Main dome, interior. File:MainAltarMissionJalpan.JPG, Main altar. MissionTanyocol2

A second mission is located in the community of Tancoyol called Nuestra Señora de la Luz de Tancoyol, dedicated to Our Lady of Light. This facade has profuse vegetative ornamentation, with ears of corn prominent and is the most elaborate of the five missions. It is likely that this mission was constructed by Juan Ramos de Lora, who resided here from 1761 to 1767. The structure is similar to those in Jalpan and Landa. It has a church with a Latin cross layout and choir area, a

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is us ...

, atrium with cross and chapels in the corners of the atrium called " capillas posas." There is also a pilgrims' gate, a cloister and quarters for the priest. The interior has a number of sculptures including one of "Our Lady of Light." The facade is marked by a

rhomboid Traditionally, in two-dimensional geometry, a rhomboid is a parallelogram in which adjacent sides are of unequal lengths and angles are non-right angled. The terms "rhomboid" and "parallelogram" are often erroneously conflated with each oth ...

window surrounded by a representation of the cord Franciscans use to tie their habits. The basic theme of the facade is mercy, represented by interventions by the Virgin Mary and various saints. The iconography of this portal is the most elaborate of the five missions. The facade consists of three bodies, a

pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...

and four estípite columns. The lower body has sculptures of Saints Peter and

and who Franciscan coats of arms. The second body has sculptures of

Joachim Joachim was, according to Sacred tradition, the husband of Saint Anne, the father of Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary (mother of Jesus), and the maternal grandfather of Jesus. The story of Joachim and Anne first appears in the Gospel of James, part of ...

and

Saint Anne According to apocrypha, as well as Christianity, Christian and Islamic tradition, Saint Anne was the mother of Mary, mother of Jesus, Mary, the wife of Joachim and the maternal grandmother of Jesus. Mary's mother is not named in the Bible's Gosp ...

, with the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

in her arms, and a niche in the center. There are also images from the

Passion Passion, the Passion or the Passions may refer to: Emotion * Passion (emotion), a very strong feeling about a person or thing * Passions (philosophy), emotional states as used in philosophical discussions * Stoic passions, various forms of emotio ...

such as nails and a lance. This niche contained an image of Our Lady of Light, but it is empty now. Between the second and third bodies, there is a large window and above it, a representation of the

stigmata Stigmata (, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion Five Holy Wounds, wounds of Jesus in Christian ...

. The pediment contains a large cross in relief of two styles related to the Franciscan and Dominican orders. The main cross at the top represents redemption with the crosses of Calatrava and Jerusalem on either side. Indigenous elements are found in the church's interior, with an image of a

jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

and a person with

Olmec The Olmecs () or Olmec were an early known major Mesoamerican civilization, flourishing in the modern-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco from roughly 1200 to 400 Before the Common Era, BCE during Mesoamerica's Mesoamerican chronolog ...

features. The bell tower is narrow and the

baptistery In Church architecture, Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek language, Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned ...

is at the base of this tower. On the lower part appears a small window which illuminates the baptistery. The cupola of the tower is in a pyramid shape with a Baroque iron cross on top. File:NaveMainaltarTancoyol.JPG, Inside the mission. File:PortalTancoyol.JPG, Main facade. File:BellTowerTancoyol.JPG, Bell tower. File:BaptistryTancoyol.JPG, Baptistery. File:MainAltarTancoyol.JPG, Main altar. File:CupolaTancoyol1.JPG, Main dome, interior. San Miguel Concá mission is located forty km from Jalpan on Highway 69 to Río Verde. The church is in the center of the community on one side of Guerrero Street. It is oriented to the south and dedicated to the

Archangel Michael Michael, also called Saint Michael the Archangel, Archangel Michael and Saint Michael the Taxiarch is an archangel and the warrior of God in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. The earliest surviving mentions of his name are in third- and second ...

. It is the smallest of the mission churches and was probably finished in 1754, according to an inscription located inside the church. Concá is a Pame word which means "with me." San Miguel Concá is the furthest north and the smallest of the missions. The decoration features large flowers, foliage and coarse figures in indigenous style. It is distinguished by an image of the

Holy Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, three ...

at the crest along with a rabbit (a Pame symbol) and double-headed eagle. File:NaveConcá.JPG, Inside the mission. File:San Miguel Concá.jpg, Main facade. File:BaptisteryConcá2.JPG, Baptistery. File:MainAltarConcá.JPG, Main altar. File:CupolaConcá.JPG, Main dome, interior. Fachada Tilaco

San Francisco de Asís del Valle de Tilaco mission is in a small community eighteen km northeast of Landa de Matamoros. It was constructed between 1754 and 1762 by Juan Crespi and dedicated to

. It has some characteristics different from the other missions. First, it is built on a gradient. The bell tower is separated from the main nave of the church by the baptistery and structurally functions as a

buttress A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient (typically Gothic) buildings, as a means of providing support to act ...

for the church. Tilaco is the best conserved of the five missions and has the most subtle ornamentation on its facade. Its facades are composed of three horizontal and three vertical partitions, with the Franciscan coat of arms prominent over the main entrance. In Tilaco, the facade has small angels, ears of corn and a strange large jar over which is an image of Francis of Assisi. One distinctive decorative element is four

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are ...

s with indigenous features. Tilaco has the best conserved atrium corner chapels called "capillas posas," which were used for processions. File:NaveTilacoQRO.JPG, Interior of the mission. File:PortalTilaco.JPG, Main facade. File:BellTowerTilaco.JPG, Bell tower. File:MainAltarTilaco.JPG, Main altar. File:CupolaTilaco1.JPG, Main dome, interior. Santa María de la Purísima Concepción del Agua de Landa mission is located twenty km from Jalpan on Highway 120 towards Xilitla. The mission was built between 1760 and 1768 by Miguel de la Campa is dedicated to

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception The Immaculate Conception is the doctrine that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception. It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Debated by medieval theologians, it was not defined as a ...

, which gives rise to part of the community's name. It was the last of the missions to be built. The atrium is bordered by a wall and centered by a cross, and paved in stone. It is noted for its equilibrium in composition and very narrow bell tower, which is integrated into the facade. The sculpture of this facade is considered to be the best of the five according to

Arqueología Mexicana ''Arqueología Mexicana'' (Mexican Archaeology) is a bimonthly journal published by Editorial Raíces and the Mexican Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (National Institute of Anthropology and History). The first issue, devoted to ...

magazine. The faces of the mermaids at Landa have indigenous features. The facade bears a great resemblance to that of Jalpan, in various aspects, its sizes and aesthetics, the atrium is surrounded by a wall and centered by a cross, and paved. In addition to them, the Franciscan friars leave an unprecedented rubric and the notorious reflection of their predilections in the last of their missions, there we have seen through his mother, the Immaculate Conception, Saint Francis and the four saints of the column of observance, to Archangel Michael and those studies and protectors of the order, Duns Escoto and María de Agreda. We see the universal church with Saint Peter and Paul and Christ in these three martyrs, as well as the shields of the Franciscans. Inside we have medallions on the ceiling of the main nave beginning with Saint Michael the Archangel, with his traditional iconography, followed by Juan Duns Escoto exposed in a very didactic way presented with his hands holding the Immaculate Conception in one and a same pen with which through writing he tirelessly defended the dogma of Mary. And again Archangel Michael account to the center of the transept of two other archangels, Raphael and Gabriel. It stands out for its balanced composition and very narrow bell tower, which is integrated into the façade. The sculpture on this facade is considered the best of the five according to the Mexican Archeology magazine. File:NaveLanda.JPG, Inside the mission. File:Landa de Matamoros 6.jpg, Main facade. File:BellTowerLanda1.JPG, Bell tower. File:BaptisteryLanda2.JPG, Bapstistery. File:CupolaBapisteryLanda.JPG, Main dome, interior.

References

External links

UNESCO Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franciscan Missions In The Sierra Gorda Missions in Mexico Buildings and structures in Querétaro Colonial Mexico Franciscan churches in Mexico History of Querétaro Tourist attractions in Querétaro Spanish Colonial architecture in Mexico Baroque architecture in Mexico Baroque church buildings in Mexico World Heritage Sites in Mexico Junípero Serra Religion in Querétaro Former Spanish colonies