Basilica, Guanajuato, Mexico

 

Basilica, Guanajuato, Mexico
Photos by Jeff Greenberg

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The Mexican city of Guanajuato is the capital of the state of the same name. It is located 370 km (230 miles) northwest of Mexico City, at an elevation of 1,996 m (6,550 ft) above sea level. The historic town and adjacent mines are a World Heritage Site. Much of the car traffic in the city uses an underground road network.

Guanajuato was founded as a town in 1554 and received the designation as a city in 1741. It is located in one of the richest silver mining areas of Mexico, and is well known for its wealth of fine colonial era Spanish architecture.

The Spanish name "Guanajuato" comes from Quanaxhuato (or Kuanasiutu in a different orthography), meaning "Hill of Frogs" in P'urhépecha (a large rock formation outside of the city of Guanajuato looks remarkably like a frog, and frogs are common in the region). In the native religion, the frog represented the god of wisdom.

The city was originally built over the Guanajuato River, which flowed through tunnels underneath the city. However, after years of raising buildings to accommodate repeated flooding, in the mid-twentieth century, engineers built a dam and redirected the river into underground caverns. The tunnels were lit and paved with cobblestones for automobile traffic, and this underground road network carries the majority of cars driving through the city today. It is one of the most notable features of the city.

The city played a major role in the Mexican War of Independence since it is the capital of the state of Guanajuato in which Miguel Hidalgo started the independence movement. The statue of El Pípila and the Alhóndiga de Granaditas still remind of that time.