Museo Regional Potosino
The history and culture of the San Luis Potosí region and its predecessors: the Mesoamerican and Huasteca cultures, the city of Tamtoc, the Viceroyalty, Independence, the wars of the nineteenth century, the period of Porfirio Díaz and the Revolution: these are all exhibited in a splendid building dating from 1591 which incorporates the beautiful Aranzazu chapel.
This museum holds one of the most significant archeological heritages in the Huasteca region and has an outstanding gallery of pictures from the viceregal period. Located in the historical centre of the city of San Luis Potosí, the Regional Museum is part of a Franciscan monastery. Construction began in 1591 and monks were already living here the following year. The museum occupies the service courtyards, corridors and library of the former Franciscan monastery. The Reform Laws did away with the monastery as an institution, and it was replaced in the ancient building by workshops and schools for arts and trades, as well as a funeral home, residences and a masonic lodge. This lasted until November 20, 1952, when the museum was opened under the auspices of Ignacio Marquina as the director of the INAH and Ismael Salas as State Governor. In 2004, it received the Prize for Cultural Heritage Preservation for the architectural restoration work and restructuring of the museum, granted by the state government, the INAH and the School of Architects of San Luis Potosí, A.C. The museum’s restoration and conversion work began in 1949, when the INAH took over ownership of the building. The Aranzazú chapel and the temple of St Francis were declared national historical monuments.
Within its four galleries, it is possible to gain an overview of the cultures of Mesoamerica, as well as the history of the people of Potosí, from the evangelization of the Guachichil Indians, the daily life and faith of the settlers in the viceregal period, to the fight for independence and the agricultural revolution.
Mesoamerica Gallery. This gallery gives a tour of the cultures who occupied a large part of the present-day lands of Mexico and Central America. Huasteca Potosina. As well as describing the geography of the Huasteca region, it explains the ethnical and funerary customs, describes the first settlers of the region and provides a description of Tamtoc, the most important site in the north-east of Mexico, located in the town of Tamuín. Aranzazú chapel. This building is in the Baroque style and its decoration and roofed atrium make it a work of architecture unique in America. Foundation. This galery contains the original document for the foundation of San Luis Potosí as a federal state, as well as maps of old San Luis.
Ancient Mexico Gallery
This gallery offers a general overview of Mesoamerica. The artifacts are arranged by region of origin, beginning with ceramic and bone objects from the Tlatilco peoples, featuring Olmec-style traits.
Ancient Mexico Gallery
This gallery offers a general overview of Mesoamerica. The artifacts are arranged by region of origin, beginning with ceramic and bone objects from the Tlatilco peoples, featuring Olmec-style traits. The next section showcases ceramics from western Mexico, created by groups who inhabited present-day Nayarit, Colima, Jalisco, and Michoacán.
Also on display are funerary urns representing "Cocijo", the Zapotec rain god, and geometric-patterned Mixtec ceramics from the Oaxaca region. From the cultures of the Central Valleys, there are various objects such as obsidian-carved jewelry, and ceramic vessels for domestic, ritual, and ceremonial use from the Teotihuacan and Mexica civilizations. The Gulf Coast region is represented by objects and stone sculptures from the Totonac and Olmec cultures.
The exhibition concludes with the Maya region, represented by figurines from Jaina Island in Campeche and ceramic vessels from the surrounding area.
Central Highlands and Middle Zone
This section displays artifacts made by the Guachichil peoples, including a striking deformed skull. Also featured are objects from the Middle Zone, such as pipes and female figurines recovered from the lagoon of Media Luna, attributed to the Xi’iuy or Pame culture.
Central Highlands and Middle Zone
Huasteca Gallery
This gallery presents an overview of the Huasteca region’s natural landscape, which includes the Sierra Madre Oriental and the Gulf Coastal Plain. It explores the ethnic traditions and funerary practices of the region.
Huasteca Gallery
This gallery presents an overview of the Huasteca region’s natural landscape, which includes the Sierra Madre Oriental and the Gulf Coastal Plain. It explores the ethnic traditions and funerary practices of the region. A timeline of the Huasteca cultures and a description of their society are also provided.
Representative artifacts include a replica of the Huastec Adolescent, the Stela of Tamtoc from the Tamuín municipality, the Goddess of Fertility, a black-and-white transversal pot, and a zoomorphic effigy vessel, along with other finely carved faces and masks. The gallery concludes with facsimiles of codices depicting ritual festivals of Huastec origin.
Viceregal Kitchen
This room recreates the intimate, day-to-day life of 18th-century San Luis Potosí, inviting visitors to imagine the scents and flavors of a viceregal kitchen in New Spain: the aroma of firewood, chicken, rabbit, turkey, pork, chile, milk, cheese, curds, and butter—just to name a few ingredients—a
Viceregal Kitchen
This room recreates the intimate, day-to-day life of 18th-century San Luis Potosí, inviting visitors to imagine the scents and flavors of a viceregal kitchen in New Spain: the aroma of firewood, chicken, rabbit, turkey, pork, chile, milk, cheese, curds, and butter—just to name a few ingredients—along with the taste of preserves, caramel sweets (cajetas), and jellies that nourished and sustained daily life.
The centerpiece of this exhibit is the Brazier of the Vicereine María Francisca de la Gándara y Cardona de Calleja, a native of San Luis Potosí and the only Creole-born vicereine of New Spain. In 1807, she married General Félix María Calleja, the highest political authority and later Viceroy of New Spain.
Founding Charter
As guardian of the Founding Charter of San Luis Potosí, the Regional Museum has dedicated a special space to bring visitors closer to one of the most significant moments in the city’s history—the founding of what would become San Luis Potosí.
Founding Charter
As guardian of the Founding Charter of San Luis Potosí, the Regional Museum has dedicated a special space to bring visitors closer to one of the most significant moments in the city’s history—the founding of what would become San Luis Potosí.
This exhibit places the Founding Charter in context, surrounded by historical documents that reflect the urban and architectural development that began, unknowingly, in November 1592. Urban plans and building drawings, preserved on paper, silently bear witness to the city’s early development and now coexist in this gallery.
Manuel Muro Library
Located within the museum, the Manuel Muro Library was inaugurated on August 25, 1951, thanks to donations from prominent individuals and the Mexican Society of Statistics and Geography.
Manuel Muro Library
Located within the museum, the Manuel Muro Library was inaugurated on August 25, 1951, thanks to donations from prominent individuals and the Mexican Society of Statistics and Geography. With over 65 years of service, it continues to serve a wide range of users and is currently specializing its collections in areas related to the mission of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH).
The National Library of Anthropology and History (BNAH) plays a vital role in keeping the collection up to date through the Logicat system for cataloging and services. The BNAH also provides the library with collections through legal deposit, donations, and acquisitions.
Chapel of Aranzazú
Located on the upper floor, the Chapel of Aranzazú is the most prominent and visited space in the Regional Museum of San Luis Potosí. Dating to the second half of the 18th century, it is one of the finest examples of Potosino Baroque.
Chapel of Aranzazú
Located on the upper floor, the Chapel of Aranzazú is the most prominent and visited space in the Regional Museum of San Luis Potosí. Dating to the second half of the 18th century, it is one of the finest examples of Potosino Baroque. It was built at the initiative of Fray Joaquín de Bocanegra, guardian of the former Franciscan convent, with construction beginning in 1749 and continuing until 1760.
The chapel is unique in that it was built on an upper level and features a covered atrium. It served as a private space, particularly for Franciscan novices. The finely carved stone façade features slender "estípites" (baroque pilasters) with shallow niches on either side. Above the doorway is a carved keystone bearing the coat of arms of Aranzazú, flanked by two Franciscan shields and a central medallion.
The mesquite-wood door is original and features high-relief carvings. Behind the altar and facing today’s Plaza de Aranzazú, there is a beautiful Baroque window—now one of the most iconic architectural features in the city of San Luis Potosí.
Narthex of the Chapel of Aranzazú
Upon exiting the chapel, visitors find themselves in the atrium—an unusual covered atrium, rare in convent architecture. The space features a vaulted ceiling with four windows. The decorative elements symbolize mourning for the death of Saint Francis of Assisi.
Narthex of the Chapel of Aranzazú
Upon exiting the chapel, visitors find themselves in the atrium—an unusual covered atrium, rare in convent architecture. The space features a vaulted ceiling with four windows. The decorative elements symbolize mourning for the death of Saint Francis of Assisi.
The chapel’s façade, visible from this space, is a striking example of Baroque design, composed of two vertical sections. Its two main columns are slender and delicately carved "estípites", showcasing the artistry and elegance of colonial religious architecture.
Document
- Dirección del Centro INAHImelda Aguirre Mendozaimelda_aguirre@inah.gob.mx+52 (444) 813 4941AdministraciónNeftali Alfaro Martínezneftali_alfaro@inah.gob.mx+52 (444) 812 0358Comunicación EducativaDiana Guadalupe Farias Astudillodiana_farias@inah.gob.mx+52 (444) 812 0358BibliotecaJosefina Lara Díazjosefina_lara@inah.gob.mx+52 (444) 812 0358
