St. Nicholas of Tolentino monastery and church in Actopan, Hidalgo: preservation, surveying and reuse of a heritage building in Mexico

Abstract

During the sixteenth century the process of the conquest of Mesoamerica was complex and it took more than 50 years to suppress the resistance of the Indian population. In that length of time Augustinians played a prominent role. St. Nicholas of Tolentino monastery was designed to exercise charity and today it is one of the most important heritage buildings in the State of Hidalgo, Mexico. The Augustinian Hermits had a devotion to reading and studying of sacred scriptures and used the monastery and the church during several years. In spite of frequent conflicts during the nineteenth century in Mexico the church and the convent still preserve their original architecture. By the second half of the twentieth century the monastery declined, and the Mexican government decided to restore it. The purpose of this paper is to expose benefits of using recent surveying methods, as well as the possible reuse of the monastery as a gallery. Also with the help of a MALA ramac X3M radar we surveyed specific walls – and certain floor surfaces inside the church, in order to find undiscovered rooms. Non destructive evaluation techniques can be useful to determine the reuse of historic buildings.