Jalpan de Serra
| Jalpan de Serra | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Coordinates: 21 ° 13 ′ N , 99 ° 28 ′ W Jalpan de Serra on the map of Queretaro
|
||
| Basic data | ||
| Country | Mexico | |
| State | Querétaro | |
| Municipio | Jalpan de Serra | |
| City foundation | 1744 | |
| Residents | 11,010 (2010) | |
| City insignia | ||
 |
||
| Detailed data | ||
| height | 750 m | |
| Post Code | 76340 | |
| Time zone | UTC −6 | |
 |
||
Jalpan de Serra is a city of about 11,000 people in the north of the Mexican state of Querétaro . Because of its historic city center, it is one of the Pueblos Mágicos .
Jalpan de Serra is the administrative seat of the municipality of the same name, Jalpan de Serra, with 150 villages and hamlets with a total of around 25,000 inhabitants. The Franciscan missions in the Sierra Gorda , including the Misión de Santiago de Jalpan , were recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 2003 because of their historical and cultural importance .
location
Jalpan is located in a valley of the Sierra Gorda in the central highlands of Mexico at an altitude of approx. 740 to 780 m above sea level. d. M. Santiago de Querétaro , the capital of the state, is about 190 km to the southwest; the places of the neighboring municipality Landa de Matamoros , some of which are worth seeing , are only about 25 km to the east. The climate is temperate and by Mexican standards quite rainy.
Population and economy
Only a small part of the inhabitants of the community, who mostly belong to the Pame Indios, speak the regional language; and Nahuatl , the language of the Aztec conquerors has become rare; Colloquial language is mostly Spanish. Corn, wheat, beans and vegetables are grown in the villages of the parish; there are also numerous fruit trees. Several small craft workshops and shops have sprung up in the city; In the outskirts, smaller industrial companies for furniture production have also settled.
history
Perhaps as early as the 2nd or 3rd century AD, the Huasteks built the Tancama ceremonial square in the area of today's municipality , which was abandoned around the year 900. In pre- Hispanic times the Sierra Gorda was inhabited by Nahuatl- speaking Pame Indians; some of them still lived nomadically and left no stone buildings. In the 15th century, the Aztecs conquered the region, but did not rule it completely. After the conquest of the Aztec Empire (1519–1521) by Hernán Cortés , the Augustinian order took on the mission of missionary work , but by a decree by Viceroy Luis de Velasco y Castilla in 1609, this task was transferred to the Franciscan order , whose successes initially remained low . It was above all the Franciscan Junípero Serra who pushed ahead with the building of mission stations with great zeal in the 50s and 60s of the 18th century. Jalpan had already received town charter in 1744.
Attractions
- The Parish Church ( Parroquía de Santiago Apóstol ), an impressive building from the mid-18th century. The cloister courtyard is enclosed by a square wall. Like almost all mission churches, the building has only one bell tower on the north side, the basement of which is kept almost unadorned, whereas the corners of the two octagonal bell floors are provided with twisted columns . The actual facade is divided into three or four levels by cornices ; the sides are adorned by two rows of pilasters in the Churrigueresque style , between which there are niches with figures of saints. The gable field closes with lambrequin arches . The arched field above the portal shows two crossed arms, their hands nailed to a cross; one arm is clad in a robe, the other is naked and covered with ulcers - a motif that recurs in most of the other mission churches in the Sierra Gorda. The interior of the church has a single nave; there are several stone altars on the side walls. The crossing is closed by a dome resting on a windowed octagonal drum ; the back of the apse closes with a flat wall. The current main altar seems to have been added later in the late 19th or early 20th century. To the side of the church is a double-arched capilla abierta . In the middle of the forecourt is a wrought-iron cross on a stepped substructure.
Detail of the facade
dto.
- The Museo Histórico de la Sierra Gorda , housed in a former military building, displays tools, wicker baskets, ceramics and masks from the area, but also cannon balls. Photos and display boards complete the picture.
Surroundings
- Approx. 1 km south of Jalpan there is a reservoir ( Presa Jalpan ), which is used by the locals but also by migratory birds.
- The archaeological site of Tancama , about 10 km to the south-east, which has only been partially excavated and restored, is attributed to the Huasteken and was inhabited between 200 and 900. It comprises over 40 platforms, a maximum of 5 to 6 m high, covered by stones, as well as an approx. 15 m high temple pyramid .
- The facade of the church of the Misión de Nuestra Señora de la Luz de Tancoyol ( 21 ° 23 ′ 58 ″ N , 99 ° 19 ′ 52 ″ W ), which was also built in the 18th century, is another architectural gem of the region . The 3- or 4-storey middle section of the facade is structured by double rows of pilasters on each side in the Churrigueresque style ; There are figures of saints in the niches in between. On both sides of the blown gable there are strangely shaped flowers. The two upper floors of the bell tower on the left also show lavish decorative motifs. There are several carved altars on both sides of the nave. To the side of the church is a single-arched capilla abierta , in front of it there is a wrought-iron cross on a pedestal divided by small columns.
Web links
- Enciclopedia de los Municipios y Delegaciones de México: Jalpan de Serra (Spanish)
- Jalpan and surroundings, sights - photos + information (Spanish)
- Jalpan and surroundings, sights photos + information (Spanish)
Individual evidence
- ^ Catálogo de Localidades
- ↑ Jalpan - Villages and Hamlets
- ↑ Entry on the website of the UNESCO World Heritage Center ( English and French ).
- ↑ Jalpan - Map with altitude information
- ↑ Jalpan - climate tables