5/5 Víctor Zavala K. 5 years ago on Google
As
you
might
heard,
Palacio
Nacional
has
a
vast
and
interesting
murals
paired
by
Diego
Rivera,
which
I’ll
describe
in
a
moment,
but
the
National
Palace,
has
a
fascinating
important
history...
It
turns
out,
that
it
used
to
be:
Moctezuma's
"New
Houses"
The
site
and
much
of
the
building
material
of
the
current
building
is
of
what
were
called
Moctezuma
II's
"New
Houses".
This
palace
functioned
as
the
Aztec
tlatoani's
residence
and
performed
a
number
of
official
functions
as
well.
The
building
was
divided
into
two
sections
and
decorated
with
marble
and
painted
stucco.
The
main
façade
contained
the
shield
of
the
monarchy,
an
eagle
with
a
snake
in
its
claws.
It
has
three
patios
surrounded
by
porticos,
indoor
sanitary
facilities,
fountains
and
gardens.
The
bedrooms
had
tapestries
of
cotton,
feathers
and
rabbit
fur
painted
in
bright
colors.
The
floors
were
of
polished
stucco
and
covered
in
animal
furs
and
finely-woven
mats.
There
were
rooms
for
servants,
administrative
staff,
and
military
guards,
along
with
kitchens,
pantries
and
storage
rooms.
The
richness
of
the
palace
surprised
Cortés,
which
he
relayed
in
letters
to
Charles
I
of
Spain.
Part
of
Diego
Rivera's
mural
depicting
Mexico's
history
in
the
main
stairwell
Left
panel
of
Rivera's
History
of
Mexico
mural
in
the
main
stairwell
A
number
of
changes
were
made
during
the
rule
of
Porfirio
Díaz.
The
English-made
clock
on
the
parapet
was
moved
to
the
tower
of
the
Church
of
Santo
Domingo.
The
façade
was
cemented
over
and
etched
to
look
like
stone
block.
Cloth
awnings
were
placed
on
the
windows
of
the
upper
floors.
On
pedestals
near
the
main
door,
statues
of
female
forms
were
placed.
Inside,
the
ambassador's
room,
the
dining
room,
the
kitchens,
the
lounge,
the
garages
and
the
stables
were
all
refurnished.
This
was
done
at
a
time
when
French
style
was
popular
in
Mexico.
Between
1926
and
1929,
the
third
floor
was
added
during
the
term
of
President
Plutarco
Elías
Calles
by
Alberto
J.
Pani,
an
engineer
and
then
finance
minister
and
designed
by
Augusto
Petriccioli.[1][3]
Merlons
were
placed
on
the
towers
and
parapet
and
decorative
caps
were
placed
on
all
three
doors.
The
Dolores
Bell
was
placed
in
a
niche
flanked
by
atlantes
above
the
balcony
above
the
central
door.
The
façade
was
covered
with
red
tezontle
stone
and
installed
stone
frames
on
the
doors,
windows,
cornices,
and
parapets.
In
the
interior,
a
grand
staircase
of
marble
was
installed
in
the
central
patio
(where
Diego
Rivera
would
later
paint
The
History
of
Mexico
mural)
and
constructed
stairs
to
the
internal
revenue
department
and
the
offices
of
the
General
Treasury
in
the
north
wing.
The
old
Chamber
of
Deputies,
abandoned
after
a
fire
in
1872,
was
reconstructed
and
re-inaugurated
as
a
museum
to
the
centennial.
A
statue
of
Benito
Juárez
was
placed
in
the
north
wing
near
his
old
quarters.
This
statue
was
made
with
bronze
from
the
cannons
of
the
Conservative
Army
during
the
Reform
War
and
from
French
projectiles
from
the
Battle
of
Puebla.
This
caused
the
Palace
to
lose
its
Baroque
(and
French)
appearance
and
give
it
the
appearance
it
has
today.
Palace
as
presidential
residence
All
the
viceroys
that
ruled
New
Spain
during
the
colonial
period
lived
in
this
residence
except
for
Antonio
de
Mendoza
and
Juan
O’Donojú,
the
first
and
last
viceroys.
After
independence,
the
palace
was
home
to
the
two
emperors
who
ruled
Mexico
during
brief
periods:
Agustin
de
Iturbide
and
Maximilian
I
of
Mexico.
The
first
president
to
live
in
the
building
was
also
Mexico's
first
president,
Guadalupe
Victoria,
and
its
last
occupant
in
the
19th
century
was
Manuel
González,
president
from
1880
to
1884.
After
that,
the
presidential
residence
was
Los
Pinos,
but
the
National
Palace
became
the
official
residence
once
again
with
Andrés
Manuel
López
Obrador,
president
since
2018.
Famous
people
who
stayed
here
include
Sor
Juana
Inés
de
la
Cruz,
Mateo
Alemán,
Friar
Servando
de
Mier
(he
also
died
here),
Alexander
von
Humboldt
and
Simón
Bolívar.
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