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Cuitzeo (Spanish )(full name Cuitzeo del Porvenir) is a town and municipality located in the north of the Mexican state of Michoacán. It is located in a relatively flat depression around Lake Cuitzeo, a large, very shallow lake, which is in danger of disappearing. The town was officially founded in 1550, with the founding of a large Augustinian monastery, which still stands. Today, the town is the seat of a rural municipality, providing local government to surrounding communities. ==The town== The town of Cuitzeo is located just over thirty km north of Morelia, on the north shore of Lake Cuitzeo.〔 〕 It is a quiet, rural town, with narrow streets and buildings of white facades with thatched or tile roofs. The streets are mostly traveled by people and pack animals and most of the ambient noise comes from birds in overhead trees, especially in the main plaza.〔〔 〕 Its main activities are agriculture, livestock, commerce and fishing with a population of 8,760 (2010) .〔 〕 The main structure in the town is the former Santa María Magdalena monastery complex located to one side of the main plaza. The complex consists of a church, cloister, garden and open chapel.〔 Its main attraction is its Plateresque facade, with carvings of Spanish royal arms, Christian symbolism, Augustinian insignia and indigenous imagery, reflecting that the monastery was one of the most sumptuous of its time.〔 〕 Its style is influenced that the church front at Acolman, but it is larger and more imposing. The design and carving of the façade is attributed to a Purépecha craftsman named Juan Metl, whose signature is found inscribed on an ornamental plaque beside the main entrance. It is the only example of this from early colonial Mexico.〔 Another important aspect of the exterior is the open chapel, which is elaborately framed, located behind the portería of the monastery complex. It contains a well preserved 16th century fresco of the Last Judgment and a 17th-century mural of a crucified friar, which may be Antonio de Roa.〔 The monastery was founded by the Augustinians, with construction started in 1550 over the ruins of a former Purépecha temple to the sun god Curicaueri, using stone from the old building.〔〔 The structure served as a headquarters for the order and a school.〔 In 1865, it was used as a military fort. In 1965, the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia took control of the structure, and en 1974, a graphic arts museum ( Museo de la Estampa) was opened, renovating the refectory and other living quarters. The museum contains a permanent collection from over forty artists including Leopoldo Méndez and Alfredo Zalce .〔〔 There are also halls and passageways dedicated to Purépecha archeology and religious items from the colonial era. The upper floor of the cloister contains the Sala Capitular, which houses the monastery library with over 1,100 volumes, mostly from the 18th and 19th centuries.〔 Another important structure is the former Franciscan hospital which dates from the 18th century, as well as the Santa Magdalena Church, the Concepción Church, the San Pablo Church, the Calvario Church and the Virgin of Guadalupe Sanctuary. These churches have sculptures and paintings that date from the colonial period as far back as the 16th century.〔〔 In 2006, the town was named a “Pueblo Mágico.”〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Cuitzeo」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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