Church of San Marcos

enlarged in the late 1300s; front refaced in 1797 according to an inscription on the facade; tower built in 1836








Front facade facing a narrow street

 
The narrow church front was resurfaced in 1797 according to an inscription on the facade (see plaque below). Nine talvera tile panels depict religious figures and the whole front, including the curved top, is outlined with blue and white tiles in a regular alternating pattern.
 

The nine narrative panels

The panels are in a wall "set with red ladrillo and traditional blue azulejo tile in an intriguing diamante pattern of petaled azulejos laid square against lozenge shaped ladrillos" (quoted from an unpublished manuscript by Richard Perry). Starting from the left bottom and going clockwise, the narrative panels depict: the robed figure of the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception on a globe; St. Joachim, the father of Mary; St. Mark with his symbol, the lion; the archangel Gabriel, the angel of the Annunciation holding the lily; St. Michael at the top holding the scales of judgment; the archangel Raphael with a fish (a reference to a story in the Book of Tobit); St. John with his symbol, the eagle; St. Anne, the mother of Mary; and at the bottom right, St. Joseph on a globe.
 
 
 
 

Details of the facade including the plaque with the date of the refurbished front

 

The belltower

 

Views of the side with its enormous buttresses (topped by a beautiful scroll design) and of the cupola






Work Consulted:

Guía. Arquitectura representativa de la ciudad de Puebla. Puebla: Centro para la Conservación del Patrimonio Cultural Tangible e Intangible A. C., L'Anxaneta Ediciones, 2008.


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© 2013 Mary Ann Sullivan. I have photographed (on site), scanned, and manipulated all the images on these pages. Please feel free to use them for personal or educational purposes. They are not available for commercial purposes.