City Temple Stage: Eschatalogical Architecture and Liturgic
by Jaime Lara
Category: Art

City, Temple, Stage is a new interpretation of the art, architecture, and liturgy created for the conversion of Aztecs and other native peoples of central Mexico by European Franciscan missionaries in the mid-sixteenth century. Jaime Lara contends that the design of missionary centers, or so-called "fortress monasteries," can only be understood against the backdrop of the eschatological concerns of the age and the missionary techniques of the mendicant friars. Lara argues that these architectural constructions are quasi-theatrical sets for elaborate educational and liturgical events that served as rehearsals for the last age of world history. By analyzing the iconography associated with the Aztec religion and with Euro-Christian apocalyptic texts, Lara has been able to trace a consistent thread through two distinct religious and liturgical imaginations. Lara's narrative is supported by more than 225 images.