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Nestled in the mountains of the Sierra de Guanajuato is the picturesque city of Guanajuato, located about three-and-a-half hours from Mexico City. Its name originates from the word “Quanax-juato,” which, in the indigenous dialect of the region, means “Place of frogs” because the indigenous tribes thought the place was fit only for frogs!

Little could they have known that the Spanish would later find rich veins of silver and extract from them vast fortunes to build a magnificent city and such beautiful churches as Iglesia de San Cayetano (or Valenciana, built between 1765 and 1786) on the outskirts of the city.

The Valenciana mine was one of the richest silver finds in history. In the 18th century, this one mine on its own accounted for two-thirds of the world’s silver production. Today, this mine is still exploited.

The Guanajuato’s main street follows the original course of the Guanajuato River, running beneath the city for almost 3 kilometers (1.86 miles).

The river used to flood the downtown area with alarming frequency until a dam was built in the 1960s to contain it.

Guanajuato is crisscrossed by hundreds of callejones (alleyways), the most famous of which is “Callejón del Beso” (Alley of the Kiss, right). The local romantic legend has it that this callejón is so narrow that lovers, each standing on a balcony of either side of the alley, can reach across the alley and exchange a kiss! The alleyway also is part of the route of the popular traditional callejoneadas of Guanajuato when student choral groups stroll the alleyways of Guanajuato at night, strumming their guitars and serenading the local populace.

Less romantic perhaps, but of greater historical significance, is the callejón by which Ignacio Allende and Padre Hidalgo entered the city with their army in 1810 to confront royalist troops for the first time.

After marching from Dolores Hidalgo to San Miguel de Allende, then on to Celaya and Salamanca, they entered Guanajuato through this portal with a force of 20,000 men to engage in their first real battle against the Spanish garrison, which was holed up in a granary (Alhóndiga de Granaditas) in the center of the city. The granary was almost impossible to assault, but the ragged rebel army prevailed when Juan José de los Reyes Martínez, “El Pipila”, strapped a paving stone to his back to shield himself from the bullets of the Spanish guns, made his way to the front door of the granary and set it afire so the troops could gain entrance. A colossal statue of El Pipila stands high above the city.

Guanajuato annually hosts the International Cervantino Festival, named in honor of Miguel de Cervantes, author of “Don Quixote.” This festival began in 1972. Artists from around the world perform in recitals, concerts, plays, ballet, modern dance, opera and art exhibits. Events are held throughout the city and, indeed, throughout Mexico in other cities such as Mexico City, Guadalajara and San Miguel de Allende. But the real focus of activity for the festival is the Teatro Juárez, which faces the main plaza of downtown Guanajuato, el Jardín de la Unión.

The Mummies

The Guanajuato mummies were discovered in a cemetery of Guanajuato. They are accidental modern mummies and were literally “dug up” between the years 1896 and 1958 when a local law required relatives to pay a type of “grave tax.”

You could pay the tax once (170 pesos) and be done with it, but there was an option that may have appealed to wealthier individuals. You were also allowed to pay a yearly fee (20 pesos), which, naturally, would have appealed to poorer families.

However, if the relatives could not pay this yearly tax for three years, the body was dug up from the cemetery and (if the fee still wasn’t paid) placed on display in El Museo de Las Momias.

No one knows for certain how the mummies were made since no scientists have studied the mummies. However, some experts speculate that the mummies resulted from a combination of the soil conditions and a dry climate of the mountainous area.

These circumstances would have caused the bodies to dry out naturally before they could decompose.

The bodies were placed in tombs, seven rows high; apparently, those in the middle row were more likely to have been naturally mummified. However, only those who failed to pay the grave tax were ever exhumed.

No one is certain how many mummified bodies were removed from the crypts, but 111 mummies are presently on display in Guanajuato’s mummy museum. Possibly, many other natural mummies are lying in the cemetery...but no one will ever find out, since the law was changed in 1958. Although no new bodies have been exhumed, the museum still displays the original mummies, and that is one of the most important things that attract tourism to Guanajuato.

Today’s Lesson

1. Guanajuato comes from the word _______________, which means _________________in the indigenous dialect.

2. In the 18th century, ______________ mine accounted for two-thirds of the world’s silver production.

3. The alley most famous of Guanajuato is_______________.

4. International Cervantino Festival is named in honor of_______________, and it is celebrated annually in Guanajuato.

5. In Guanajuato’s Mummy Museum, there are ______ mummies in display.

Answers:

1. Quanax-juato.  Place of frogs.     2. The Valenciana     3. The Alley of the Kiss.     4. Miguel de Cervantes     5. 111