National Palace, Mexico

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Photo by flickr user Antoine Hubert

On this stop key decisions about Mexico and the people of Mexico have been made since before there was even a Mexico.  This is possible because the current pinkish stone building was built on top of the Palace of Moctezuma II, who was the last ruler of the Aztec Empire.  The location isn't all these two great buildings share, one was also made borrowing much of the stone used in the other.  

The building has three entrances: the southern entrance goes to the Presidential offices, the northern entrance is for the Treasury, and the middle entrance, the one with the balcony above it, is the main entrance, leading to the main patio, which is where you can see the vast triptych mural by Diego Rivera which is called “The Epic of the Mexican People” and tells the story of Mexico between 1521 and 1930.  More of Diego's art can be seen on the Palace's first floor, where there are another eleven panels.  

The Grand Courtyard, which is below the central entrance, is also open to the public and worth visiting, because from here you get a good idea of the scale of the whole building.  The history of the building is also well worth looking into if you enjoyed the taster of the triptych.  

Written by  Blair Metcalfe.

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