Morelia Cathedral

The beautiful main square (Plaza de los Mártires or Zócalo) is lined on three sides by arcades. The east side is completely dominated by the magnificent cathedral which is built in pinkish-brown trachyte. Construction began in 1640 and continued until more than a century later. Despite this length of time the cathedral's style, predominantly strictly Baroque, has remained completely unified. The azulejo-

decorated dome of the church is striking. The interior, which was partly refurbished at the end of the 19th c., contains several notable features: the Neo-Classical retablos, the silver font, a crucifix by Manuel Tolsá, the imposing organ built in Germany in 1903, and a number of paintings in the chancel and the sacristy which are attributed to the leading painters of the first half of the 18th c., Juan Rodríguez Juárez, José Maria de Ibarra and Miguel Cabrera. An Indian "de caña" figure of Christ, wearing a golden crown donated by the Spanish king Philip II, is also kept in the sacristy.