# Central Mexico City: 700 years of architecture



## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

Mexico City’s downtown is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Spanning 700 years of architecture, its concentration of significant structures is unmatched in the Americas. Hopefully I’ll keep updating this thread to showcase the best of this area, often under appreciated by residents themselves!

Not that old, but still magnificent, the Central Post Office on 5 de Mayo Street. 









The National Art Museum (MUNAL) on the Manuel Tolsá Square. The building was the site of Mexico’s first Telecoms Secretariat and its spectacular central staircase has appeared in movies and TV ads for decades. The statue of Spanish King Charles IV used to be on the leafy Reforma Boulevard, but after independence was declared it obviously had to be moved to a less prominent site!





















Finally, a few random facades. More later


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## MPOWER (Jun 12, 2007)

Damn, awesome shots!


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## DeNeza401 (May 17, 2008)

Beautiful!!!!!!!! Luv it big time.


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## shyaman (Oct 12, 2006)

Great architecture!
Love to see the city someday.


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## city_thing (May 25, 2006)

Breathtaking. Please post many, many more!


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## capricorn2000 (Nov 30, 2006)

stunningly beautiful old buildings. they are treasures!!!


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

Beautiful, very nice photos from Mexico city


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## Munichpictures1970 (Aug 2, 2007)

Very interesting pictures!


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## MikeAgs (Nov 12, 2009)

There is a reason why one of the nicknames for the city is : The City Of Palaces :cheers:


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## kingsway (Dec 15, 2009)

great photos of wonderful architecture!!!


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## cameronpaul (Jan 15, 2010)

Thanks for these great photos = please post many more,very interested in seeing Mexico City and its great diversity.


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## DeNeza401 (May 17, 2008)

Keep those pixs coming.......... BTW The area where Mexico City stands today have been continuosly inhabitated for over 3 millenium.


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## AlukarD359 (May 6, 2008)

please post more!!!!!


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## DeNeza401 (May 17, 2008)

Any more pixs??????? As always they just open a new thread and then forget about it.


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

Hold your horses, DeNeza! Here we go...

La Casa de los Azulejos “House of Tiles” was the residence of the Count of the Valley of Orizaba and was built in 1737-1793. Today it houses a rather ordinary chain shop and restaurant. But it is still a pleasure to visit and have breakfast there!









Where we should have started, the Metropolitan Cathedral. It took over 400 years to finish, and it reflects all the styles favored throughout its construction. 











El Palacio de las Bellas Artes (“Fine Arts Palace”), Mexico City’s opera house. It also houses the National Museum of Architecture and temporary exhibition spaces. The bright white marble exterior with its sensual Art Nouveau lines, contrasts starkly with the dark stone and straight lines of the Art Deco interior.


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

^^ Amazing and beautiful... thanks for those new photos


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## Nightsky (Sep 16, 2002)

Splendid historic architecture. We usually see only the modern buildings otherwise.


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## DeNeza401 (May 17, 2008)

Great!!! Love it... U post we follow...


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## cameronpaul (Jan 15, 2010)

Love those interior photos of Palacio de Bellas Artes, have not seen the inside before- what fantastic quality!! How many new buildings have that high level of design and materials, very few I'm afraid.


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## capricorn2000 (Nov 30, 2006)

the Fine Arts Palace is a treasure of eclectic designs. The exterior has a touch of neo baroque and art deco and the glass dome is an art nouveau. the interior however is predominantly art deco and to add to that is the modern metal sculpture in the forefront.


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## Guest (May 6, 2012)

Linguine said:


> marvelous new photos from Mexico City....thanks for the effort.:cheers:


+1 :cheers:


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## Adamo Dlacroix (Oct 14, 2010)

Omg!!!

Mexico city is just perfect!


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## cameronpaul (Jan 15, 2010)

Adamo Dlacroix said:


> Omg!!!
> 
> Mexico city is just perfect!


I have long suspected that Mexico City had some wonderful heritage but these photos have shown that it has preserved a lot more than most other cities in Central and South America and is to be congratulated on that and of course it is now getting the rewards of such far sighted vision.


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

More images from central Mexico City!

Tlatelolco (meaning “mounds overflat land” in náhuatl, the Azted language), founded as an Aztec city in 1388 by members of a disaffected group who left the islands on the lake, is now a section in the downtown area known mostly because of the huge, brutalist commie-block complex of the same name. The centerpiece, the Square of Three Cultures (Prehispanic, Colonial and Contemporary) features a former church, a former Aztec temple, and the 1950s buildings of the complex. A couple of those towers collapsed in the 1985 earthquake, killing hundreds. But even before that, the name of Tlatelolco has had a sad ring to it. In 1968, just a few days before the opening ceremonies of the 1968 Olympic Games, hundreds of students protesting the authoritarian political regime were shot dead in the area of the square. This is Mexico’s very own Tiananmen moment. Mexico’s subsequent political development and the collapse of the authoritarian regime can be traced back to that watershed event. 




























The government tried to cover up and bury the events of 1968, but October 2 remained an unofficial national day of mourning for decades. It was only after the end of the one-party system, that officialdom was able to finally atone for the actions of its predecessors. The former site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was turned into a cultural center and a “1968 Memorial,” one of the most interesting and poignant museums in the city. 

















































































































































The Day of the Dead, celebrated Mexican style, means offerings and altars, skeletons and skulls in Prehispanic styles, and yellow Cempasúchil flowers. This fascinating mix of colonial and prehispanic heritage is especially colourful downtown and other traditional areas of the city. Better than Halloween!





































Let’s go back to the very core of the city, the Zócalo (central square) and check out the National Palace. This is the city’s oldest site of secular power and one of the main buildings of the federal Executive. The building sits on top of the ruins of Moctezuma’s (Montezuma) Palace. Many town squares all over the country have a similar look, but are only a fraction of the size. After being the residence of Hernando Cortes and his descendants, it became the main site of the Colonial Government of the New Spain Viceroyship in 1563. 














































The National Palace has suffered multiple refurbishments, enlargements and renovations through the centuries. It includes courtyards, gardens, (former) chapels, libraries and reception rooms. It is still a working office building too. 




















































































































































































































































Among the renovations and additions, the 20th Century saw the painting of the murals by Diego Rivera, one of the best reasons to visit!




























Right outside the North Side of the National Palace, the Gallery of the Ministry of Finance is always hosting exhibits and events. The building is the former site of the Archbishopric of New Spain.














































Some more random images downtown.


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## pwright1 (Jun 1, 2003)

Mexico City is an architectural gem. Just beautiful.


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

A few random images, for an update! Mostly of the little area between the Fine Arts Palace and the National Art Museum.

















































http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m545/aljuarezcentro1/P3206558.jpg[/IMG]


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

Some more images of places in "El Centro Histórico"!

The monument to the Mexican Revolution was going to be the central dome of the huge, new Mexican Congress building, started in 1910, but the civil war called "Revolution" broke out in the same year. In the 1930s, the abandoned shell was turned into an art deco monument. 











For the bi centennial celebrations in 2010, the monument was restored and a new elevator to the inside part of the dome was installled. Nice views!







































Also new is the Museum of the Revolution, built underground below the Monument. Check out the model of what the Congress building would have looked like!

























The museum of San Carlos is the city's place to check out European art from the 14th to the early 20th centuries. It was totally restored recently and the unusual round courtyard shines again! :banana:


























Random scenes and buildings















The Church of The True Cross was built in the 16th Century, but was redone almost beyond recognition in the 18th. The cute little square and fountain to the side are worth a stop too. Two museums, the Historical Engraving Museum and the Franz Meyer decorative arts museum are right there too. 



















Practically next door, on the same square, the Church of San Juan de Dios, is less ellaborate, but will give you a better idea of what churches in the early colonial times looked like. 























After a couple of churches, two museums, a monument and all the walking in-between, I'd say we deserve a pre-dinner break. How about the café on the top floor of the downtown branch of the Sears department store? There are nice views over the Alameda Park and the Fine Arts Palace, the city's elegant nouveau-deco opera house! :cheers:


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

More from El Centro Histórico!
We go back to the very heart of the city, the central square called "Zócalo".

First, let's have breakfast at the Gran Hotel Ciudad de México hotel, an art nouveau structure which started as a Paris-style department store. Somehow, the stained glass ceiling is one of the city's least famous wonders!











From the rooftop restaurant, there are great views of the central square and the city's first city hall (but rebuilt in the 17th Century). It still houses the mayor's office.















Moving straight across the square, towards the North-East corner, we go down Moneda Street, so called because the first mint in was established there in 1570.













We will turn left on Licenciado Verdad Street and walk past the former convent of Saint Theresa. It currently hosts a contemporary art museum, but they were changing exhibits when I tried to visit...hno:









Past the convent we reach the far side of the Templo Mayor (Aztec main temple) ruins. I love the view of the ruins with the back side of the cathedral and the Apartado Palace.





But today we're checking out the Palacio de la Autonomía (Palace of the Autonomy), so called because it housed part of the National University when it was granted political and juridical independence from the government. The current structure was built at the turn of the 20th Century, so it's pretty new.







Let's go in!





One of the courtyards has the archaeological remains of the Axayacatl temple, from aztec times. The views of the dome of the St. Theresa convent complete the view.









Rather strangely, the main reason to visit, is an exhibit on ancient Egypt! It has few original pieces, but the space is nicely designed and very atmospheric. It's also very informative... There's another exhibit on "Horror and Fear" with cheesy reproductions of monsters and mythological creatures. Skip that one... or go in for a laugh! :lol:













The palace is large enough to include facilities of a school associated with the National University.







Walking back towards the Fine Arts Palace, and right in front of the equastrian statue of Charles IV of Spain, you will see this, the Palace of Mining (Palacio de Minería). This building, also owned by the National University is considered one of the masterpieces of neoclassical colonial architecture. It now hosts exhibition spaces and large events, including the city's book fair. It recently celebrated its 200th anniversary.























Finally, a few new angles of places we've seen here before...

The Correo Mayor (main post office)













And the National ARt Museum, with an exhibit of whe work of Jose Guadalupe Posada, a late-18th and early-20th century illustrator who is considered Mexico's first mass communicator.


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

^^ Great, very nice new photos from Mexico city


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## MyGeorge (Mar 4, 2012)

there is somehow a distinct characteristics of those old colonial edifices.
likewise, those murals by well known Mexican painters are really quite impressive..


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

Back to El Centro...

Continuing on the Eastern sector of the Zócalo (main square), we get to the little-visited José Luis Cuevas museum. Named after a still living Mexican artist, the museum occupies the former convent of Santa Inés. There was controversy at the time of the remodelling (José Luis Cuevas regarded by some as a panderer and a sell-off, and with much public money going into the restoration of the crumbling building), but the results speak for themselves. La Giganta (The Giant Woman) sculpture sits in the middle. Many people who have visited the museum are likely to have done so for some wedding reception or other such function, rather than for artistic interest. I'd say it's not on many people's top-five must-see spots. 





















Literally steps away, the church of Jesús María and the San Carlos Academy of the Arts, with its Donatello sculpture reproductions out front. 















Walking back towards the Zócalo, the National Museum of World Cultures, housed in the former Palace of the Mint, the first in the Americas. 
Now, this one most kids visit at some point during their primary schooling to look at the original and reproduction pieces of everything from Asirian sculpture to South Pacific masks. To me, the place is mostly worth a stop for the building itself, and the murals by Rufino Tamayo.



































Random impressions...

















Finally, time for coffee!


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

The Palace of the Counts of Miravalle, on Isabel la Católica Street, has been given a new lease on life as a cool complex including a hotel, hostel, bars, restaurants and shops. Great pit stop!

















The Mexican Design Center





At the Spanish Cultural Center there's always something going on: exhibits, concerts, conferences... if nothing catches your fancy, you can always head to the terrace, overlooking the cathedral.



















The Franz Mayer museum, named after the man who formed an impressive collection of painting, furniture and other artifacts, is the city's Applied Arts Museum. But today we're only taking a break at the café, in the museum's lovely courtyard, one of the city's most peaceful and inviting. 










El Palacio de Hierro, Mexico's most prestigious department store opened one of the continent's first Paris style establishments in the early 20th Century... stained glass ceiling and all.





The Popular Arts Museum highlights Mexican handcrafts from all over the country. Great shop too!





































Not everything is old downtown







Impressions... mostly doors and windows.


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

Great, very nice updates about Mexico city :cheers:


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## capricorn2000 (Nov 30, 2006)

wow! this is one great tour of the heritage, the jewel of Mexico city and I know I'll see this in person one of these years - 
just waiting for the right time.
thank you.


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## toshijmx (May 31, 2011)

Soooo wonderful! 
I really need to revisit this town. So much to see, and this is just one of the many interesting areas!


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## roballan (Aug 23, 2009)

Downtown Mexico City is a really nice place indeed. During the last few years it has experienced numerous renovations and improvements as part of a government program aiming to rescue its historic heritage and architecture, as well as to repopulate the area (which was largely abandoned after the 1985 earthquake). This downtown renaissance has lead to the opening of really nice fashion stores, boutique hotels, art galleries and haute cuisine restaurants, as well as the arrival of numerous retail stores.


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## Nightsky (Sep 16, 2002)

Wonderful mix of old and new! Wish more parts of the city looked like this, but it seems a lot of areas have improved and it seems to be a really interesting city to visit.


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## alexander2000 (Aug 6, 2011)

lovely indeed.... like that old character of Mexican architecture and the art and culture as well..


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## El_Greco (Apr 1, 2005)

Beautiful architecture, interesting glimpse of lifestyle in MC as well. Really want to visit it!


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## aljuarez (Mar 16, 2005)

Still checking out the Eastern side of the Centro. 

The Ministry of Education occupies several buildings in the area. Here are two of them. 



























More in the Easter area of the Zócalo...























The Santa María de Loreto church has the largest dome in Mexico City, but sadly, it has been plagued by structural problems from the very beginning, due to the unstable soil on which is was built. It has nevertheless withstood dozens of earthquakes. The cost of restauration it are too high for modern times, so we may have to wait still longer until something is done about this deteriorating beauty. The church is only as old as independent Mexico (about 2 centuries) but it's in much worse shape than much older temples in the area.




















Right outside the church, the leafy Loreto Square also has the Justo Sierra Synagogue, with a gorgeous interior that you can visit on guided tours.


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