Anthony Ortega
ARCH 1121
Professor Zagarolli
February 28, 2020
I have a lot of interest in Mexican architecture. My parents were both born in Mexico, and I have visited the country a couple of times and have witnessed some of their structures in person. One particular site that intrigued me was the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral. I have visited the Cathedral several times and still fascinates me. The Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral begins when a Bishop named Friar Juan De Zumarraga arrives in Mexico City in 1528. Hernan Cortes, a Spanish Conquistador, had begun constructing the church in 1524, and Zumarraga finished in 1532. This structure stood up for about a century. With the permission of Alonso de Montufar, there was a permanent Cathedral soon to be constructed. Beginning with laying the foundations in 1562, Claudio de Arciniega was the designer, and Juan Miguel de Aguero was the master builder. Walls were being raised in 1573, officially starting the construction. The Cathedral was built over ruins of the Aztec temple Tenochtitlan. In 1989, reconstruction began. Under excavation began for the Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral and the Sagrario Church. This was done to level the structures and make the foundations stronger.
Mexico City Metropolitan Cathedral, Mexico City, Mexico, 1573-1813
Claudio de Arciniega
Citations:
Ovando-Shelley, Efraín, and Enrique Santoyo. “Underexcavation for Leveling Buildings in
Mexico City: Case of the Metropolitan Cathedral and the Sagrario Church.” Microsoft
Academic, 2001,
academic.microsoft.com/paper/2024267554/reference/search?q=Underexcavation%2Bfor%2Bleveling%2Bbuildings%2Bin%2BMexico%2BCity%3A%2BCase%2Bof%2Bthe%2Bmetropolitan%2Bcathedral%2Band%2Bthe%2BSagrario%2Bchurch&qe=Or%28Id%253D1978810964%252CId%253D2128143215%252CId%253D2132721992%252CId%253D1801750017%29&f=&orderBy=0.
Robles, Eugenio Noriega. “THE MEXICO CITY CATHEDRAL.” Artes De México, no.
182/183, 1975, pp. 34–84. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/24317683. Accessed 29 Feb. 2020.
Tamez, et al. “UNDEREXCAVATION OF MEXICO CITY’S METROPOLITAN CATHEDRAL
AND SAGRARION CHURCH.” TRID, 30 Nov. 1998, trid.trb.org/view/500721.
