Ruta Dominica (Dominican Route) of Oaxaca: San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Church West Façade

The work of colonial-era Mixtec stone-carvers and artisans lives untouched in this old monastery in the Mixteca Alta.  This mountainous area, the Mixteca Alta, lying to the northwest of Oaxaca City is home to a group of great 16th century Dominican monasteries built long ago to further the evangelization of Oaxaca. One of them, the magnificent Santo Domingo de Yanhuitlan, has already been explored in this blog (May 20, 2013). The  long (1/12-2 hours) car ride to this rugged area is worthwhile and can be done as a day trip.  San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca is the earliest and least changed of the great Dominican monasteries of the Mixteca Alta.  The Dominicans arrived here in the 1540's and by 1570 the buildings were completed. (note: please click on photos and they will enlarge).

Grounds-plan:

All the monasteries were built in a similar pattern. The open chapel was the first structure to rise up, built to further the evangelization of a people who did not have a concept of indoor worship,  then the church and the cloister (convento) to house the monks. Looking head on at the Coixtlahuaca complex, the hexagonal open chapel is seen at the very left, separated by a small distance from the church, which is next to it, viewer-right, and next to and attached to the church is the monastery's convento or cloister, the monks' residence. At a distance from the church/convento complex was what was called the casa de la cacica or in the Mixtec language, tecpan, something not seen in other areas of Oaxaca.  In the Mixtec- controlled areas, the local indigenous nobility still played a significant role in the early colonial community and this tecpan was built to house the local chief. In general, this person was the first to convert to Christianity and his presence on the monastery grounds was a symbolic encouragement for his people to follow suit and accept the new religion.


                                                     

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Open Chapel

San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca,  North façade of church

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Convento entrance

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Church seen from interior courtyard of convento

Open Chapel:

This chapel, built in 1546, was the earliest part of the monastery.  The polygonal vault which once covered it has collapsed and it is now open to the sky.

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Open Chapel

The chapel is characterized by bands of tequitqui carving, a syncretic style that included both indigenous and Christian symbols. Tequitqui carving tended to have a flattened appearance resembling that of pre-Hispanic carving styles.  

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Open Chapel rib detail

In the following photo eagle-like pelicans intertwine with plumed rattlesnakes.

San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca, Open Chapel rib carving

The presence of the indigenous symbols in this new house of worship was powerful for the new converts forming a bridge to their old religion and its temples.

The Church:

Exterior:

The church building is not ornamented apart from its two doors.  The north door was the one  used in processions in the early Colonial period.

San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca, West Façade of Church

                                       

Three large statues are carved above the door in a style that clearly reflects the work of the indigenous carvers. St. John the Baptist, the monastery's patron saint, is in the center flanked by Saints Peter and Paul. Above these is a Gothic rose window with intricate carving on either side. 

San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca, North Façade of  Church

On both sides of the upper façade are intricate carvings of the elements of Christ's Passion, as seen in the photo below.                                        
                                             

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, North Façade - Elements of the Passions

                                                

The west door and facade are more classical in style, but contain tequitqui elements.
In particular, the triangular element above the door consists of the Spanish coat of arms 
surrounded by the two-headed Hapsburg eagle, an animal that had strong indigenous resonance. The church has a single tower.

   

San Juan Bautista Coixtlahuaca, West Façade

                                                      

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, North Door of Church

                                                   

                                                   

Interior:

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Church Interior seen from Choir

                                                                                                       

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Main Retablo

                                                       

This main retablo has fourteen painted panels many of which are attributed to Andres de Concha a Spanish master from Seville.  Simon Peyrens, the Flemish sculptor, may have done some of the carving on the altarpiece.  Here is the arrangement of the paintings in this retablo, from the top down, in rows: (photo will enlarge when clicked).

                                                              God the Father

                                                    St. Anne, Trinity, St. Joachim

                                                    Ascension, Crucifixion, Resurrection

                                                    Presentation in the Temple, Three Kings

                                                    Adoration of the Shepherds, Annunciation

Church Ceiling:

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Church Ceiling

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Church ceiling ribbing

                                                                 

                        

      

San Juan Bautista, Coixlahuaca, Church ceiling Roof Boss

                                                                                     

The church's ribbed ceiling is unique with the molded, painted ribs and the tequitqui carved roof bosses. Each contains miniature portraits of saints and their symbols.  

The Convento:

The convento is located alongside the church building of the Coixtlahuaca monastery.
Only the lower is intact, although it is possible to visit parts of the upper level which over the years has been damaged by earthquakes.  Some reconstruction is on-going on this second level.

                               

                                             

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Convento entrance

                                                

                                                

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Convento Door and Façade

                                                 

The convento is located directly next to the church and the two buildings share a wall.

                                              

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Church-Convento shared wall

                                              

San Juan Bautista, Coixlahuaca, Convento Courtyard

As many early colonial Mexican buildings, Coixtlahuaca's convento shows mudejar  (derived from Islamic architecture ) details in features of the building such as the door and window below.

    

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Convento Corridor

          

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Convento Mudejar-style Door

             

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Mudejar Window

In parts of the Coixtlahuaca convento, remnants of the original wall frescos remain.

                

San Juan Bautista, Coixlahuaca, original fresco 

                                                        

The Tecpan:

The building in the old photograph below, the tecpan or casa de la cacica, was the home of the indigenous noble who led the community and encouraged the conversion effort.  This building, which no longer exists, was torn down and the bricks used to build another building for the modern community. It was built with considerable ornamental detail, as can be seen in the second photo.

San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca, Tecpan (no longer in existence)

San Juan Coixtlahuaca, Tecpan architectural detail

         

Although the neighboring monastery at Yanhuitlan has been elegantly restored and the one at Teposcolula is undergoing extensive restoration, San Juan Bautista, Coixtlahuaca retains an aura of authenticity because it has not been restored.   I visited both Coixtlahuaca and Teposcolula in the same day and the former, by far, was my favorite.  INAH, the Mexican government bureau which oversees archaeological and historical sites, has a representative in all major monasteries.  Here, at Coixtlahuaca, this representative was extremely gracious and helpful and unlocked the choir loft of the church giving me the chance to access an incredible perspective on the old church as well as offering information and photos of the no longer existant tecpan.                                                                                       

Ex-Convento of Santiago Apóstol Cuilapan: A Unique Monastery in Oaxaca

Ex-Convento of Santiago Apóstol, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

History is vibrant in this 16th monastery located near the town of Zaachila in Oaxaca. The ex-convento of Santiago Apóstol is described by Richard Perry, the Mexican architecture specialist, as "one of the most original churches in the Americas". This is because of its open-air basilica, which in colonial times was covered with a thatched roof and used as an open-air church;  the same function was performed by the atriums of other monasteries. A basilica is a very old church architectural form featuring a single hall, double rows of columns and a semi-circular apse (domed vault) at its end.  

The "basilica", Santiago Apóstol, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

View from within basilica looking outward, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

History:
The pre-conquest inhabitants of this area were Mixtec Indians living in an area that was largely Zapotec;  Cuilapan participated in the cultural heritage of both of these groups.   During colonial times each year the victory of Mixtecs over Zapotecs in Cuilapan was celebrated in the basilica and the church contains the grave of a Zapotec princess, as well.   Connection to cultural heritage continues to this day.   Every July 25th during the celebration of the church's patron saint Santiago (James) there is a ceremonial dance, the Dance of the Conquest, to mark the Aztecs' defeat by Cortés.  The Aztecs had been an enemy of the local Zapotecs and Mixtecs, by 1450 crossing over into the Valley of Oaxaca to control their trade routes and collect tribute from them.  Cortes' defeat of the Aztecs put an end to their subjugation.

Friars of the Dominican order arrived in Oaxaca in 1528 and over the years built a network of impressive monasteries in the area as a part of their effort of converting the indigenous peoples.  (see May 20, 2013 post about another one of these, Yanhuitlan- http://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2013/05/yanhuitlan-oaxaca-colonial-culture.html).  Cuilapan was begun in 1550 and work was continued until the 1570's and stopped in 1580, remaining unfinished until the present. In the 18th century, the religious orders became increasingly less important as the secular clergy began to be in charge of religious life in Mexico.  The Dominicans left Cuilapan in 1753, at which point Santiago Apóstol ceased to be a monastery, becoming an ex-convento.

Portrait of Cuilapan Convent Complex with roof intact, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Historical Portrait of Cuilapan Convent complex, Cuilapan,  Oaxaca MX

Construction:

In order of construction, the open-air basilica was built first and used as a worship space while the main church was built.  At one point, a wood roof covered the open church and the far arch in the arcade of the basilica was blocked to further enclose it;  although the side arches are now open again, the back arch remains blocked. The two portraits, which hang in the monastery's cloister, show Cuilapan as it looked in colonial times with the basilica enclosed,  although in one of them the roof is partly gone which could have referred to the later collapse, but this is unclear.

Blocked back arch, Santiago Apóstol, Cuilapan, MX

The Church:
Although the church, still in use as a house of worship, is built on a grand scale, its interior is rather stark, bare and lacking in the elaborate altarpieces and statuary seen in other Oaxacan churches. The entrance to the church, tucked-away, in a courtyard is completely plain, lacking the elaborately-carved façade that is typically present.

Church Entrance, Santiago Apóstol, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

The church interior is plain with none of the elaborately-carved and guilded side altars that would normally be seen in a building of this stature.

Santiago Apóstol church, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

The church is entered through the rear, which is where its door is located. The photo shows the  starkness and lack ornamentation of this area.  

Door  and rear of Santiago Aspóstol Church, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Main Altar, Santiago Apóstal, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

The side chapel used for adoration of the Holy Sacrament is the most decorative space with the church; notice the colorful wall murals that remain.

Side chapel, Santiago Apóstol, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

In comparison with many Oaxacan churches, Santiago Apóstol has sparse statuary; its most impressive image is a folk sculpture of Santiago on horseback, that is a very typical image in Oaxaca.

Santiago Apóstol,  Church of Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Princess Donaji:

Tomb of Princess Donaji, Santiago Apóstol Church, Cuilapan Oaxaca MX

The tombstone of Princess Donaji, a 16th century Zapotec convert to Christianity who was the daughter of the last king of the Zapotecs.   Recalling Oaxacan history, there had been endless battles between the Mixtecs and Zapotecs and Donaji was taken by the Mixtecs as a pledge of peace, to be killed if the Zapotecs did not keep their word.  Zapotec warriors burst into Mixtec territory after the peace had been reached and Donaji was killed. The legend says that her head and face were found perfectly preserved in a field; her body was buried in the church, presumably, to attract new Zapotec converts.

The Cloister:
The Cuilapan convent contained sixteen cells for friars as well as the common living and working areas.

View of Cuilapan Cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Courtyard of Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Exterior corridor of Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Interior Corridor of Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca  MX

Cloister Murals:

The Cuilapan cloister interior was once a rich visual environment with many walls covered with murals; some of these still remain,  although in varying degrees of deterioration.  The most important of the murals is the "Tree of Martyrs", seen below. Each individual monk portrayed holds a palm, symbol of their martyr status.

     

                                     

                       Tree of Martyrs,  Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, MX

This kind of a tree is a device that various groups have used to define their long genealogy to establish an identity of deep-rootedness, significance and authority. In the colonial world it was, more or less, a marketing device used by various religious orders to establish their legitimacy  among the indigenous peoples they were aiming to convert.  The idea of tree resonated deeply with the Mesoamerican psyche, as world trees were a motif in many Mesoamerican cosmologies, embodying the four cardinal directions and the tree as an axis mundi connecting underworld with the sky and earthly planes.

Other murals reflecting Renaissance motifs, as seen below, were common in colonial Mexico.  This is explored in the March 11, 2014 post of this blog:  http://colonialmexicoinsideandout.blogspot.com/2014/03/italian-renaissance-in-colonial-mexico.html

Niche formerly containing devotional image, Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Wall mural, Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

This arch below reveals the remnant of the kind of Renaissance floriate decoration typical of these monasteries. Symbolically this type of decoration reflected the idea of Paradise and often contained images of local flora.

Floriate arch decoration in Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

As was the practice in monasteries, various luminaries of their order such as the bishops below, were shown in the wall murals.

Wall mural, Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Wall mural, Cuilapan cloister, Cuilapan, Oaxaca MX

Although Santiago Apóstol may not be Oaxaca's most ornate worship space, it is certainly  an interesting one.  Cuilapan's open-air "basilica" is unique in Mexico and it is the only church to house the tomb of a legendary Zapotec princess.  The stark interior and exterior of the church is so unexpected that it contributes to Cuilapan's unique identity.