Metepec

History

Otomi and Matlatzinca people lived around this hill in the Valley of Toluca long before the Spanish, and pre-Hispanic burials have been found near the hilltop chapel. The Matlatzincas were at their height between about 1120 and 1450. Around 1470 the Mexica ruler Axayácatl conquered Metepec along with the rest of the valley.

During the Spanish conquest, Gonzalo de Sandoval and his Otomi allies took the towns of the valley. Lands around Metepec were granted to captain Juan Gutiérrez Altamirano, who brought in the Franciscans, and they later formed part of the estates of the Counts of Santiago. According to the Codex of Metepec, the Spanish town of San Juan Bautista Metepec was founded in 1526. Work on the Franciscan monastery began in 1569; it also served as a school, and a visiting friar described its two-story cloister in 1585. By 1560 Metepec was the seat of an alcaldía mayor. The parish church beside the monastery, with its unusual folding-screen facade modeled in clay, was completed in the 18th century.

The municipality was created in 1821 and ratified by the state in 1827. Pottery, once made mainly for ceremonial and religious use, grew into the town's signature craft. The monastery has been a national monument since 1935, the Quimera festival has been held since 1990, and Metepec was named a Pueblo Mágico in 2012.