Templo de Santo Domingo

The Templo de Santo Domingo is on Plaza Santo Domingo in the northern part of Mexico City's Centro Histórico. The Dominican order arrived in Mexico in 1526 and established a convent here, and the present Baroque church was built from 1717 to 1736. Its stone façade is organised in tiers of paired columns and niches holding statues of Saint Dominic, Saint Francis and Saint Hippolytus, and a relief of the Holy Trinity. The original convent was largely demolished in the nineteenth century, so the church now stands as the main survivor of the ensemble. The interior features rich Baroque and Churrigueresque altarpieces in gilded wood, and a lofty nave with a dome. Around the plaza are the arcaded Portal de Evangelistas, where public scribes have typed letters and documents for customers since colonial times, and the former Palace of the Inquisition, built 1732 to 1736 and now the Museo de la Medicina Mexicana of UNAM. The church remains an active place of worship, so visitors should expect Masses and quiet. The plaza combines colonial architecture with the daily life of a working neighbourhood. The church was restored after earthquakes, and its condition today is good, although the ground settlement is visible in the slightly uneven floor. Interpretation is limited, so the visit depends on observation and a guidebook rather than set labelling. The setting, near the Templo Mayor and the Colegio de San Ildefonso, makes it a natural stop on a walking route through the oldest part of the city.