Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Cholula's churches represent every style from the Gothic to the neo-classical at the end of the colonial period. The most important example is the Franciscan monastery San Gabriel built in 1529 with a Gothic rib-vaulted roof. Nearby is the unusual Royal Chapel, one of the most unique religious buildings in Mexico. Originally it was an open-air church built without a roof, reminiscent of a mosque like that in Cordoba in Andalucia, with nine naves and thirty-six columns. For a while it was covered by a wooden roof, but later the wooden arches and cupolas that we see today were constructed. One of the characteristics of the churches of Cholula is that their cupolas have ceramic coverings, giving them a beautiful brilliance.

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