Brief Description
Built in the 16th century by the Spanish on the ruins of Tenochtitlan, the old Aztec capital, Mexico City is now one of the world's largest and most densely populated cities. It has five Aztec temples, the ruins of which have been identified, a cathedral (the largest on the continent) and some fine 19th- and 20th-century public buildings such as the Palacio de las Bellas Artes. Xochimilco lies 28 km south of Mexico City. With its network of canals and artificial islands, it testifies to the efforts of the Aztec people to build a habitat in the midst of an unfavourable environment. Its characteristic urban and rural structures, built since the 16th century and during the colonial period; have been preserved in an exceptional manner.
Built in the 16th century by the Spanish on the ruins of Tenochtitlan, the old Aztec capital, Mexico City is now one of the world's largest and most densely populated cities. It has five Aztec temples, the ruins of which have been identified, a cathedral (the largest on the continent) and some fine 19th- and 20th-century public buildings such as the Palacio de las Bellas Artes. Xochimilco lies 28 km south of Mexico City. With its network of canals and artificial islands, it testifies to the efforts of the Aztec people to build a habitat in the midst of an unfavourable environment. Its characteristic urban and rural structures, built since the 16th century and during the colonial period; have been preserved in an exceptional manner.
Centre historique de Mexico et Xochimilco
Bâtie au XVIe siècle par les Espagnols sur les ruines de Tenochtitlan, ancienne capitale aztèque, Mexico est aujourd'hui l'une des villes les plus grandes et les plus peuplées du monde. Outre ses cinq temples aztèques dont on a identifié les restes, on y trouve également la cathédrale, la plus grande du continent, ainsi que plusieurs bâtiments publics du XIXe et du XXe siècle, par exemple le Palacio de Bellas Artes. Xochimilco, à 28 km au sud du centre de Mexico, avec son réseau de canaux et d'îlots artificiels, est un témoignage exceptionnel des efforts du peuple aztèque pour construire un habitat au milieu d'un environnement peu favorable. Les structures urbaines et rurales, définies depuis le XVIe siècle et pendant la période coloniale, y ont été préservées de façon exceptionnelle.
الوسط التاريخي في مكسيكو وكزوشيميلكو
تُعتبر مكسيكو التي بناها الاسبان في القرن السادس عشر على أنقاض عاصمة الأزتيك القديمة تينوشتيتلان، وهي اليوم إحدى أهمّ المدن في العالم من حيث المساحة والكثافة السكّانية. فنجد فيها غير معابد الأزتيك الخمسة التي حُّددت بقاياها، الكاتدرائية الأكبر في القارة، بالاضافة إلى عدّة مبانٍ عامّة تعود الى القرن التاسع عشر والقرن العشرين كقصر الفنون الجميلة مثلاً. أما مدينة كزوشيميلكو التي تبعد 28 كلم جنوب وسط مكسيكو والتي تتميّز بشبكة القنوات فيها وبالجزر الصغيرة الاصطناعية، فتشهد على جهود شعب الازتيك في بناء مسكن في وسط بيئة غير مناسبة لذلك. فالمنشآت في المدن وفي الريف المعروفة منذ القرن السادس عشر وفي خلال فترة الاستعمار، تمّت المحافظة عليها بشكل استثنائي.
Source: UNESCO/BPI
墨西哥城与赫霍奇米尔科历史中心
墨西哥城建于公元16世纪，当时西班牙人在特诺奇蒂特兰的废墟上建造了古阿兹特克首都。墨西哥城今天仍然是世界上最大、人口最稠密的城市之一。除了5座阿兹特克庙宇之外，这里还有拉丁美洲最大的教堂，以及19世纪和20世纪建造的许多公共建筑，精美艺术品宫殿就是其中的代表。赫霍奇米尔科城位于墨西哥城南28公里处，那里密集的运河和人造岛屿展示了一幅阿兹特克人通过不懈努力在艰苦环境中建立起居所的画面。当地建于公元16世纪和殖民时期的典型城市和乡村建筑都被完好地保留了下来。
Source: UNESCO/ERI
Исторический центр Мехико и Сочимилько
Построенный испанцами в XVI в. на руинах древней столицы ацтеков Теночтитлана, Мехико является ныне одним из самых крупных и плотно населенных мегаполисов мира. Здесь находятся руины пяти ацтекских храмов, кафедральный собор (крупнейший на континенте) и несколько прекрасных общественных зданий XIX-XX вв., таких как Дворец изящных искусств. Сочимилько расположен в 28 км к югу от Мехико. Своей системой каналов и искусственных островов он являет пример того, как ацтеки умели строить свои поселения в мало подходящей для этого природной среде. Его характерные городские и сельские постройки, воздвигавшиеся начиная с XVI в. и во время колониального периода, отлично сохранились.
Source: UNESCO/ERI
Centro histórico de México y Xochimilco
Construida por los españoles en el siglo XVI sobre las ruinas de Tenochtitlán, la antigua capital azteca, la ciudad de México es hoy una de las capitales más grandes y pobladas el mundo. Además de los vestigios de los cinco templos aztecas localizados hasta ahora, la ciudad posee la catedral más grande del continente y hermosos edificios públicos de los siglos XIX y XX como el Palacio de Bellas Artes. Situado a 28 kilómetros al sur del centro de México, el sitio de Xochimilco con sus redes de canales e islas artificiales constituye un ejemplo excepcional de los trabajos de los aztecas para construir un hábitat en un entorno hostil al hombre. Las estructuras urbanas y rurales creadas a partir del siglo XVI durante el periodo colonial se han conservado admirablemente.
Source: UNESCO/ERI
メキシコ・シティ歴史地区とソチミルコ
source: NFUAJ
Palacio de Bellas Artes
© Esparta
Long Description
From the 14th to the 19th century, Tenochtitlan, and subsequently, Mexico City, exerted a decisive influence on the development of architecture, the monumental arts and the use of space first in the Aztec Kingdom and later in New Spain. The monumental complex of the Templo Mayor bears exceptional witness to the cults of an extinct civilization, whereas the lacustrine landscape of Xochimilco constitutes the only reminder of traditional ground occupation in the lagoons of the Mexico City basin before the Spanish conquest.
The capital of New Spain, characterized by its chequerboard layout, the regular spacing of its plazas and streets, and the splendour of its religious architecture is a prime example of Spanish settlements in the New World.
The monuments, groups of buildings or sites located at the heart of the major contemporary city amply illustrate the origins and growth of this city that has dominated the region for many centuries. However, evidence is fragmentary and dispersed. The conquistador Hernán Cortés had the ancient city of Tenochtitlan razed in 1521-22 in order to abolish any trace of the pre-Hispanic culture. In the past half-century the Spanish settlement, which was slow to prosper (100,000 inhabitants in 1537 compared with about 500,000 at the time of the conquest), has been totally swallowed up by today's giant metropolis. The sole reminders of the Aztec capital and the capital of New Spain, and of the outlying village, are a few ruins that have survived the flood of concrete.
The site covers two distinct zones: the historic centre of Mexico City and the lakeside area of Xochimilco. The value of these two properties is unequalled.
The historic centre includes the archaeological site of the Templo Mayor, which was excavated between 1978 and 1982. It presents a remarkable array of colonial monuments, of which the cathedral is the most famous, and an impressive series of large public edifices from the 19th and 20th centuries, such as the Palacio de las Bellas Artes. Historical continuity from the founding of Tenochtitlan in the 14th century to the present day is therefore perfectly represented.
The zone of Xochimilco, 28 km to the south, is the only remaining reminder of the lacustrine landscape of the Aztec capital, where the conquistadores destroyed the monuments and drained the canals. On the edge of the residual lake of Xochimilco (the southern arm of the great dried-up lake of Texcoco where the Aztecs had settled on a group of islets linked to solid ground by footbridges), and in the midst of a network of small canals, are still some chinampas, the floating gardens that the Spanish so admired. This half-natural, half-artificial landscape is now an 'ecological reserve'.
Source: UNESCO/CLT/WHC
