Old Portal de Mercaderes

Old Portal de Mercaderes is the historic name for the commercial buildings and covered arcades that occupy the west side of the Zócalo, Mexico City's main square, in the Historic Center of Mexico City. The site has been associated with commerce since the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire in 1521 and remains a mixed-use urban landmark rather than a conventional consumer brand or unified corporate property. The first colonial building on this side of the plaza was erected by Melchor Davila for the sale of food and other merchandise. Commercial activity spread from this building through adjoining streets and toward the area near Santo Domingo. Much of the land on the west side was associated with Don Rodrigo de Albornoz, Count of Santiago, secretary to King Charles V and royal accountant for New Spain. In 1524, Mexico City's municipal government authorized owners of properties facing the plaza to construct covered arcades over public land and rent the sheltered space to merchants. The arcades offered protection from the severe flooding that affected the open square, particularly during the rainy season. A drainage problem near the southwest corner of the plaza complicated construction. Albornoz reached an agreement with the city under which the city would improve drainage while he arranged for covered arcades to be built along the west side. The work was completed in 1529, producing an arcade that extended across most of the side of the square and over the routes now associated with Madero Street and 16 de Septiembre Street. The name Portal de Mercaderes remained in use through the colonial period and after Mexican independence. The portal has repeatedly changed in response to flooding, urban redevelopment, and shifts in retail patterns. A major flood in 1629 led to reconstruction of most of the arcades around the Zócalo, while the west-side portal was rebuilt again in the mid-eighteenth century by an heir of Albornoz. In the seventeenth century, merchants sold silk, brocade, fruit, and medicinal herbs there. During the nineteenth century, hat shops and toy sellers became prominent, and confectioners sold candy in the arcades at night. The opening of Plateros Street, now Madero Street, in the mid-nineteenth century divided the west side into northern and southern sections and ended the portal's status as one continuous architectural and commercial entity. The northern section is now largely occupied by offices on upper floors and shops at street level. The southern section contains jewelry stores that form the beginning of the Centro Joyero Zócalo, a jewelry-retail district extending westward for roughly two blocks and incorporating part of Palma Street. Several important buildings stand within or beside the complex. The Hotel Majestic occupies much of the building visible from the Zócalo south of Madero Street. Although portions date to the eighteenth century, the structure was extensively renovated by architect Rafael Goyeneche in 1925, and the hotel opened in 1937. Its Zócalo-facing façade was adapted in a government-mandated neocolonial style using tezontle and cantera. The hotel is now associated with Best Western and has rooms facing the square as well as a rooftop restaurant. At the southern end is the building now known as the Gran Hotel de la Ciudad de México, historically a separate structure despite its unified appearance from the plaza. Constructed in 1899 as the Mercantile Center for José de Teresa, a merchant and Mexican ambassador to Austria, it used early iron-and-concrete construction influenced by the Chicago technique and housed one of Mexico City's early department stores. It was converted into a hotel in 1968 to accommodate visitors to the Summer Olympics. Its Art Nouveau interior retains a stained-glass ceiling by French artisan Jacques Grüber and cage-like elevators, although an elaborate staircase inspired by Paris's Au Bon Marché was lost in 1966. The building has appeared as a filming location in several movies, including Licence to Kill, Spectre, and Missing. For centuries, the arcades also illustrated the difficulty of regulating public commercial space. Although private owners built the structures, the city retained ownership of the land beneath them, creating recurring disputes over maintenance, vending rights, and municipal control. Street vendors repeatedly occupied the arcades, adjoining streets, and parts of the Zócalo. Efforts to remove ambulatory commerce were intermittent until the 1990s, when the issue was addressed as part of a broader revitalization of Mexico City's historic center. Since then, the west side has been characterized more by formal ground-floor shops, especially jewelry retailers, while offices and hotel-related rooms occupy many upper floors.

The west side of Mexico City's principal square has been a commercial zone since the conquest of the Aztec Empire in 1521. One of the first colonial buildings there was built by Melchor Davila for the sale of food and other merchandise. The surrounding land was substantially associated with Don Rodrigo de Albornoz, Count of Santiago and an official connected to the court of Charles V. Because the Zócalo was vulnerable to flooding, the city council issued an ordinance in 1524 allowing property owners facing the plaza to construct covered arcades over municipal land and lease the sheltered spaces to merchants. A drainage channel near the southwest corner made construction difficult. An agreement between Albornoz and the city provided for improved drainage and the construction of arcades along the west side. The work was completed in 1529, creating the covered route that became known as the Portal de Mercaderes. The arcade was not only an architectural response to weather. It became a durable framework for commerce, with street vendors and shopkeepers occupying the covered spaces and adjacent public areas. A major flood in 1629 caused extensive damage around the plaza and led to the rebuilding of most of its surrounding portals. The west-side portal was reconstructed again in the mid-eighteenth century by an heir of Albornoz. Commercial activity changed over time. Seventeenth-century merchants sold silk, brocade, fruit, and medicinal herbs. In the nineteenth century, hat sellers and toy vendors became prominent, while candy sellers served evening visitors. The portal's function remained closely linked to pedestrian movement through the center of the city and to the changing boundaries between private premises and public space. The opening of Plateros Street, now Madero Street, in the mid-nineteenth century divided the west side of the plaza. From that point, the Portal de Mercaderes was increasingly understood as two related sections rather than one continuous structure. The current buildings are largely products of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, although some incorporate older fabric. South of Madero, the Hotel Majestic occupies much of the building facing the Zócalo. The structure contains eighteenth-century elements but was extensively remodeled by Rafael Goyeneche in 1925. The hotel opened in 1937, and its public-facing façade was adapted to the neocolonial visual program imposed on the buildings around the Zócalo. The building is now associated with Best Western. The neighboring southern structure is separate and contains the Gran Hotel de la Ciudad de México. Built in 1899 as the Mercantile Center for José de Teresa, it was an early example of iron-and-concrete construction in Mexico City and housed an early department store. The property became a hotel in 1968, when the city hosted the Summer Olympics. Its Art Nouveau interior preserves a stained-glass ceiling designed by Jacques Grüber and historic elevators. It has also served as a film location. Beginning in the late 1950s, façades facing the Zócalo were progressively regularized in a neocolonial style. Tezontle and cantera were used to coordinate the appearance of the west side with major civic buildings, including the National Palace and Federal District structures. Behind the façades, the buildings remained a varied collection of private commercial and hotel properties. The management of street commerce remained a persistent issue. The city owned the land beneath the arcades while private owners controlled or maintained the structures, producing disputes over repairs and the occupation of public space. Vendors periodically returned after clearance campaigns. During the 1990s, the issue was addressed through the revitalization of Mexico City's historic center. The west side subsequently became more formalized, with jewelry stores dominating many ground-floor premises and hotels and offices occupying much of the upper-level space.

• 1990

  Historic-center revitalization addresses street vending

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  A revitalization effort in the 1990s helps remove persistent street-peddler activity from the west side of the Zócalo.

• 1968

  Mercantile Center becomes a hotel

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  The former department-store building is converted into the Gran Hotel de la Ciudad de México to accommodate visitors attending the Mexico City Summer Olympics.

• 1937

  Hotel Majestic opens

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  The Hotel Majestic begins operating in the renovated building on the south side of the west Zócalo frontage.

• 1925

  Hotel Majestic building renovated

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  Architect Rafael Goyeneche carries out a comprehensive renovation of the building that later houses the Hotel Majestic.

• 1899

  Mercantile Center constructed

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  The building later occupied by the Gran Hotel de la Ciudad de México is built for José de Teresa as the Mercantile Center.

• 1629

  Rebuilding after major flooding

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  Severe flooding damages the Zócalo and prompts the reconstruction of most of the surrounding portals.

• 1529

  West-side portal completed

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  Following an arrangement involving improved drainage and private construction, a covered arcade is completed along most of the west side of the plaza.

• 1524

  Covered-arcade ordinance

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  The city council authorizes property owners facing the Zócalo to build covered arcades over city land and rent the spaces to merchants, partly as protection from flooding.

• 1521

  Commercial use begins after the conquest

  [1]Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org

  The west side of the future Zócalo becomes associated with commercial activity following the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire.

A historic Mexico City commercial and architectural landmark whose current identity combines Zócalo-facing retail, jewelry stores, offices, and landmark hotels.

Product categories. Jewelry · Retail merchandise · Hotel accommodation · Food, confectionery, and other commercial goods

1. 1Old Portal de Mercaderesen.wikipedia.org