Feb 1, 2023: Coyoacán

We had missed visiting Coyoacan the previous time, so we decided to go there this time. It's a long way off relatively from city center and we ubered to the cluster.

There are lovely wall murals... one of them with the trademark coyote here.

Laced with atmospheric cobblestone streets, Coyoacán is one of Mexico City's oldest neighborhoods. There is a maze of laneways, hidden plazas, colonial-style mansions, and art-filled old churches like San Juan Bautista.

In Coyoacán (“Land of the Coyotes”) there are picturesque parks and cantinas that transport us back to the colonial era thanks to the brick and stone details of the area. Iconic writers such as Trotsky and great painters like Frida Kahlo took refuge and inspiration in this area,

We collected a set of highlights and pinned them on an offline google map as we did not have a good walking map.

https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/4/edit?mid=1FrhXrc9SVgKRpKKbPDbYHOAeoodfrdS3&usp=sharing

Mercado de Coyoacan

Frieda kahla

San Juan Bautista Church

Plaza Hidalgo

Mercado Artesanal Mexicano

Churreria General de la Republica

Plaza de la Conchita

Museo Nacional de Culturas Populares. Tuesday to Thursday 10am-6pm and Friday-Sunday 10am-8pm. Entry is 11 pesos.

Chapel of Santa Catarina

Casa de Cultura Jesus Reyes Heroles

Meson de Antigua

UNAM

Museo Nacional de la Acuarela FREE

Jardín Centenario

This is the central plaza – actually two adjacent plazas: the Jardín Centenario, with the village’s iconic coyotes frolicking in its central fountain; and the larger, cobblestoned Plaza Hidalgo.

Fuente de los Coyotes

In Parque Centenario in the Coyoacán borough stands a bronze statue fountain portraying a pair of coyotes surrounded by jets of water. Created in 1967, this public artwork makes reference to the etymology of the borough’s name, which translates as “place of the abundant coyotes” in the language of the Aztecs.

coyotes were once a common sight in this part of the Mexican valley. During the reign of the Aztec empire, this place would have been covered in pine forest and scrubland where coyotes and other animals dwelt. The coyote was an animal with much significance in the Aztec cosmovision.

There is an ancient Aztec deity Huehuecoyotl, [“Old Coyote.”] a wise yet hedonistic and mischevious trickster god with dualistic qualities. The coyote god was often associated with indulgent behavior, partying, storytelling, and male sexual prowess, and Aztec mythology had many folktales regarding the many beautiful goddesses he seduced. Such stories invariably feature Huehuecoyotl as a comical figure who either outwits through his cunning the angry gods that he has cuckolded or else is viciously punished by them for his mischief.

Huehuecoyotl’s mischief was not just limited to the supernatural sphere of the gods; he shapeshifted into human form to roam the land causing wars and conflict between people for amusement. Huehuecoyotl was also a god with positive qualities, and people would pray to him when they believed they had been cursed by other deities, hoping that the sly Huehuecoyotl might trick his fellow gods into reversing a person’s fate.

The Spanish conquest of Mexico did not entirely eradicate such beliefs, and in certain regions of the country, the coyote is still an animal imbued with a supernatural significance and associated with black magic. In many rural and indigenous communities, fears persist regarding the existence of a type of shaman known as a “Nagual” that through his or her witchcraft can shapeshift into a coyote at will to cause mischief and misfortune.

However, the coyote is no longer found in Coyoacán, and indeed is rarely seen in urban Mexico City except in zoos.

Parroquia San Juan Bautista [St John the Baptist Church / Iglesia de Coyoacán

The south side is dominated by the Parroquia de San Juan Bautista and its adjacent former monastery.

This is a 16th century Catholic church and former mission dedicated to Saint John the Baptist, presiding over the south side of Plaza Hidalgo.

The relatively plain facade of the church is almost entirely devoid of ornamentation. An inscription in Latin above the door translates to, “There is none other but a house of God, and this a gate of the heavens.”

Between 1522 and 1552, the construction took place on the site of a calmecac, a school for the sons of Aztec nobility, whose ruins still remain beneath the cloister. Over four centuries since, the original basilica has been remodeled several times, including in 1804 and from 1926 to 1947.

In front of the church entrance is a cobblestone square that originally extended into what is now Plaza Centenario. A four-story bell tower, added in the 18th century, stands to the west of the main church and was once topped by a dome, lantern and cross. Sadly, the dome collapsed during an earthquake in September 2017.

Contrary to the plain exterior, the interior is quite exuberant in Baroque style, with archways and illusion-inducing ceiling frescoes depicting scenes from the life of Jesus Christ and the saints of the Franciscan order.

A single nave flanked by seven small chapels culminates in the magnificent Chapel of the Rosary, with its lavishly decorated high altar embellished with the glow of gold leaf and the Dominican order's coat of arms bas-relief featuring fleur-de-lis cross whose petals symbolize the 12 apostles.

There was a mass going on, quite atmospheric

we walked om toward the artesanal market

Coyoacán Mexican Craft Market / Mercado Artesanal Mexicano de Coyoacán

Coyoacán’s airy two-story crafts market sells a range of goodies, from alebrijes (folk art sculptures of fantastical creatures) and Day of the Dead souvenirs to handmade shoulder bags and clothing items.