Historic Town of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines
Overview
The town of Guanajuato in central Mexico, and its nearby silver mines, represent a rich, historic ensemble of colonial and regional architecture.
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Historic Town of Guanajuato and Adjacent Mines
In 1529, Spanish settlers arrived in present-day Guanajuato (“Frog Hill” or “Place of Frogs”), situated in a narrow, winding valley of the Sierra de Guanajuato Mountains. Not long after, in 1548, the Spaniards discovered copious silver deposits in the mountains, which attracted additional settlers and adventurers to the area. They soon fortified the area at Marfil, Tepetapa, Santa Ana and Cerro del Cuarto, thus creating Guanajuato’s first neighborhoods. The town grew to include a tangle of narrow, winding streets and crisscrossing alleyways. Some of the streets are subterranean and once followed the Guanajuato River underground.
The output of the mines was tremendous, especially the Valenciana mine in northern Guanajuato, which produced two-thirds of the world’s silver during the 18th century. The town prospered from the wealth, developing into an urban area of splendid Baroque and neoclassical monuments that would impact architecture throughout Mexico. Today, most of the mines have ceased producing silver, except for La Valenciana, which is still operational. Just outside of the town is San Barnabe, one of Guanajuato’s oldest mines; it was active from the 16th century until the early 20th century. One of the deepest mineshafts in the area is the Boca del Infierno (“Mouth of Hell”), plummeting 600 meters (1,970 feet). Perhaps the city’s most important mining complex is, in the northern part of Guanajuato. It produced 30% of the world’s silver for an astounding 250 years and is still operational.
In the 18th century, La Valenciana’s owners, the Counts of Valenciana, built a church, the so-called “silver chapel,” near the mine’s entrance. The church, also called La Valenciana, features an elaborate façade in the style of Spanish Baroque, or Churrigueresque (so named after the Spanish sculptor José Benito de Churriguera). The 18th-century La Compañía church is another exceptional example of the Churrigueresque style and further illustrates the flowering of the town during Guanajuato’s golden age. Other exemplars of Guanajuato’s historic architecture include the 16th-century hospital originally built for the area’s indigenous population; the neoclassical Juarez Theater; and the elegant 18th-century University of Guanajuato.
