Home | World Heritage Site | Guanajuato, Guanajuato
|
Guanajuato is a city and municipality in central Mexico and the capital of the state of the same name. It is located in a very narrow valley, which makes the streets of the city very narrow and winding. Most are alleys through which cars cannot pass and some are long sets of stairs up the mountainsides. Many of the city’s thoroughfares are partially or fully underground. The historic center of the city is filled with colonial area mansions, churches and civil constructions built with pink or green sandstone and small plazas. The city was the result of the discovery of mines in the mountains that surround it. These mines were so rich that the city was one of the most influential during the colonial period. One of the mines, La Valenciana, accounted for two-thirds of the world’s silver production at its height. The city is home to the Mummy Museum which contains the naturally occurring mummies that were found in the municipal cemetery between the mid 19th and 20th centuries. It is also home to the Festival Internacional Cervantino, which invites artists and performers from all over the world as well as Mexico. The city was also the site of the first battle of the Mexican War of Independence between insurgent and royalist troops at the Alhóndiga de Granaditas. The city was named a World Heritage Site in 1988. |