The Sanctuario de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe is one of the five most beautiful churches in Mexico. It was built between 1708 and 1716. This is an inside view of the dome.
The church has a plain Baroque facade. Inside, however, the “polychrome” of sculpture and glazed clay by Joaquin Orta combines the clay craft of the indigenous people with fine European plaster work. The ornate decoration consists of thousands of leaves and flowers on walls, domes and vaults, creating a colourful mix of reds, pinks and golds.
To the year-around appeal of Morelia’s colonial buildings is added the natural spectacle in October of millions of monarch butterflies from Canada and the northern United Sates finding a refuge outside the city.