User:Nancystodd/Church of Analco

The Church of the Santo Ángel Custodio de Analco, commonly called the Church of Analco, is a catholic church under the jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Puebla de los Ángeles and dedicated to the Holy Guardian Angel (Santo Ángel de la Guarda) of Puebla. The church is located in Analco, an indigenous neighborhood that is one of the oldest in Puebla.

History
The church was built in the location of an older, smaller hermitage dedicated to the souls in purgatory and built by Mixtec and Tlaxcalan indigenous people in 1560. This original hermitage was demolished by regent Alonso de Rivera Barrientos in 1618 to build the church he dedicated to the guardian angel of Puebla. The church was inaugurated by the city council (ayuntamiento) in 1619.

Analco continued growing its indigenous population and, to a lesser degree, its Spanish population, ultimately needing a concession of additional land and construction of a bridge to connect the church to the city in the year 1626. The Franciscans, who already had a convent in the city near the site of this church, administered the temple starting in the year 1627. That same year, in October 13, 1627, the arrival of bishop Bernardo Gutiérrez de Quirós, elevated the church to the category of parish of Analco. The congregation embarked in a renovation effort to befit its new status as a parish with the help of donations from the Spanish residents and the hard work of the native people of Analco.

The Bishop of Puebla, Juan de Palafox y Mendoza secularized the church in 1640 when he installed the first diocesan priest, Fernando Diaz de Talavera. In 1767, a new chapel was completed in the church. This chapel was dedicated to the Virgin of Tzocuilac.

Architecture
The church was built in an indigenous baroque style using quarried stones and mortar. On the façade, the principal figure is the archangel Michael. An inscription over the front door reads: ANGELE SANCTE DEI SIT SEMPER CUSTOS MEI (Holy Angel of God, always guard me). The façade is flanked by two tall towers, one in the south built in the 17th century, and another in the north built at the end of the 18th century.

The temple consists of a single nave with a rudimentary crossing and a dome without a drum, decorated with carved reliefs of archangels, dressed in the manner of roman soldiers. The original baroque retables were replaced during the 19th century with others in a neoclassical style. The main retable depicts a guardian angel protecting a small child. To the epistle side, there is a chapel, known as the Chapel of Veronica, with a single nave. This chapel contains a sculpture of the three falls of Jesus, created by Manuel de la Paz. Next to the chapel is the baptistery, which is enclosed with a fine wrought-iron screen dated from March 16, 1780.

On the gospel side is the chapel dedicated to the Virgin of Tzocuilac, with a larger and richer wrought-iron screen donated by Roque Jaramillo de Illescas in 1767. According to legend, her painted likeness was preserved miraculously on a wall exposed to the elements. This chapel contains a trompe l'oeil painting of the Virgin Mary.