Plaza of the Three Cultures: Located at Lazaro Cardeuas Y Manuel Gonzales Streets. (Three Cultures Square). L�zaro C�rdenas Av. at Eje 1 Norte Av., next to Secretar�a de Relaciones Exteriores (Department of Foreign Affairs). Not far from Plaza Garibaldi. The Plaza of the Three Cultures, known as the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in Spanish, symbolizes Mexico�s unique cultural heritage. Once the center of some of the most powerful Native American empires (Aztec), Mexico became a flourishing Spanish colony in the 16th century. Today, most Mexicans are mestizos, or persons with mixed European and Native American ancestry representing a third culture, thus the name of the area represents a mixture of all three cultures. The Plaza of 3 Cultures is located at the ancient city Aztec city of Tlatelolco where you can see the ruins of You can also see the Colonial Cathedral of Santiago which dates back to 1524 (although it was rebuilt in 1609), inside there is the baptismal fountain of Juan Diego, the indian to whom, according to tradition, the Virgen de Guadalupe de Guadalupe appeared in 1531. Also nearby there are many apartment buildings, and government buildings. The structures which represent the Three Cultures are therefore the ancient Aztec city of Tlatelolco, the Colonial Cathedral of Santiago, and the Secretar�a de Relaciones Exteriores (Department of Foreign Affairs) building. These three structures can all be seen together at the same location. Of course, the modern city of Mexico City surrounds the entire area. The plaza is also important as being the site of three terrible events in Mexican history. It was at Tlatelolco that on August 13, 1521 the Aztecs made their final stand against the Spanish army led by Hernan Cortes. It is said that 40,000 Aztecs died in the desperate struggle and their bodies clogged the local canals for days afterward. The battle is memorialized in the plaza by a plaque which reads in part, "Neither a victory nor a defeat, but the painful moment of birth of the Mexico of today, of a race of Mestizos". With that day came the end of the pre-Columbian era in Mexican history. The second tragedy occurred on 2 October 1968 when Mexican soldiers, equipped with tanks and machine guns, fired into a crowd of 14,000 unarmed students who were staging a protest against spending on the 1968 Summer Olympics being held in Mexico City. A huge monument at the site lists the names and ages of some of the students who fell that day. The plaza was the site of more death on September 19, 1985 when an early morning earthquake caused a modern building adjacent to the plaza to collapse. For days thereafter tents were erected on the plaza as temporary shelter for some of those left homeless by the quake. The earthquake, which affected Mexico City, left at least 8,000 dead. The part of the ancient city Aztec city of Tlatelolco that is excavated is only a small part of Tlatelolco. Much of the ancient city is under the modern buildings that surround the plaza.

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The Plaza of the Three Cultures or Plaza de las Tres Culturas of Mexico City Looking from Tlatelolco To The NNE Toward The Cathedral of Santiago Modern Day Apartments In Background

The Plaza of the Three Cultures or Plaza de las Tres Culturas of Mexico City Looking from Tlatelolco To The SE Toward The Cathedral of Santiago

The Plaza of the Three Cultures or Plaza de las Tres Culturas of Mexico City The Secretar�a de Relaciones Exteriores (Department of Foreign Affairs) Building

The Plaza of the Three Cultures or Plaza de las Tres Culturas of Mexico City Site Map

Secretar�a de Relaciones Exteriores (Department of Foreign Affairs) Building South Side Of The Plaza	Secretar�a de Relaciones Exteriores (Department of Foreign Affairs) Building South Side Of The Plaza
North East Plaza View	East Plaza View
SE Corner "Templo Mayor Etapa II"	East Side "Templo Mayor Etapa II"
South Side "Templo Mayor Etapa II"	West Side "Templo Mayor Etapa II"
Etapa Constructivas del Templo Mayor	Etapa Constructivas del Templo Mayo
Etapa Constructivas del Templo Mayor	Etapa Constructivas del Templo Mayor
East Plaza View, Cathedral Of Santiago	Altar Tzompantli del Norte
Temple Of Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl Round Shape	Temple Of Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl Round Shape
El Gran Basamento	The Grand Platform
Templo de las Pinturas	Templo Calendarico
Templo Calendarico, With 52 Panels	The Panels Add
Up To The Years	In The Mexica Calendar
Templo Calendarico Panels	Templo Calendarico Panels
Templo Calendarico Panels	Templo Calendarico Panels
Stone Storage Box And Lid	Stone Storage Box Found At NE Corner Templo Mayor Etapa II
"The Lovers Of Tlatelolco" 47 Skeletons Were Found Here	Tlatelolco Excavated Area

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Click Here To Tour Inside The Tlatelolco Iglesia de Santiago. (Tlatelolco Church Of Santiago.) At The Plaza Of Three Cultures.

Click Below For Other Mexico City Attractions!

National Museum of Anthropology and History
Nationial Palace, The Palacio Nacional, Page One
Z�calo
Templo Mayor (Tenochtitl�n)
Museo Nacional de Historia (Castillo de Chapultepec)
Chapultepec Park �Bosque de Chapultepec� (Chapultepec Forest)
Bas�lica of Guadalupe
Trotsky Home Museum
Palacio de Bellas Artes
Cuicuilco Pyramid Archaeological Ruins
Plaza de Toros Bull Ring Mexico City
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