The Nuns: history, legend and mystery
Some buildings in Merida are one-of-a-kind, like the church of St. John, with its Baroque façade, the chapel of St. Elizabeth, because of its distinctive placement, or the antiquity and significance of the Cathedral. High on this list is the Church of our Lady of Consolation, better-known as the Nuns’ Church.
Standing on the corner of 63rd and 64th streets, it is remarkable not only for its architectural beauty, but also for its history rich in legend and mystery.
Originally, the church was part of a large convent complex held by the nuns of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, which was established in 1596 at the request of the citizens, and constructed thanks to generous donations, mainly that of Fernando de San Martín, a wealthy merchant who left a good part of his assets for the purchase of the land on which the convent would be built.
During the Colonial period, and well into the 19th century, it was the only religious community of women in the diocese of Yucatan, which makes the building unique in the Peninsula.
The foundation of a convent in the small city of Merida at the end of the 16th century must be understood within its historical context. It fulfilled not only a spiritual urge, but also a social need, since it was designed to house those daughters, grand-daughters and other female descendants of Conquistadores and land-owners who chose not to marry, and in consequence opted to take the habit instead. In this way, the family assured God’s good graces by giving him one of their daughters as a spiritual bride, while at the same time they preserved the family’s honor and the young lady’s virtue behind the impregnable walls of the convent.
On the 22nd of June 1596, the first five nuns arrived in Merida, from the Royal Convent of the Immaculate Conception in Mexico City. According to some sources, their names remained inscribed on the walls of the choir for hundreds of years: Marina Bautista, María de Santo Domingo, María del Espíritu Santo, Francisca de la Natividad, Ana de San Pablo and Juliana de la Concepción.
Over the years, many young Yucataecan women entered the order. The historian Miguel Bretos states that “by the mid-16th century the community had 40 sisters, recruited from among the daughters of Merida’s prominent citizens”.
Some of Merida’s Conceptionist nuns earned recognition for their writings, their gifts as playwrights, and their reputation for sanctity. Among them were Leonor de la Encarnación, a descendant of the Emperor Moctezuma; Inés de San Juan y Álvarez; Gertrudis Pren, daughter of José María Pren y Chacón, choirmaster of Merida Cathedral and the most renowned Yucatecan musician of the Colonial period; and Cayetana de Nuestra Señora del Carmen Sierra O´Reilly, sister of the eminent literary figure Justo Sierra.
Building on the church we know today began on the 9th of March 1610, when the Governor Carlos de Luna y Arellano laid the first stone. On the 9th of June 1663 the tabernacle for the Eucharist was placed inside, and the church was consecrated to Our Lady of Consolation.
The architecture is imposing and severe: from the outside, it resembles a fortress. Entrance to the church is through a sober, Renaissance-style doorway. The door is in one of the side walls, which underlines its origin as a nuns’ church. There is a single nave, between thick masonry walls, with a barrel vault above, while the chancel is covered by a beautiful rib vault reminiscent of Spanish Gothic architecture.
Especially noteworthy is the magnificent old nuns’ choir at the end of the church, opposite the chancel. Here, separated from the rest of the church by thick wrought-iron railings, the Conceptionist sisters heard mass and sang the divine offices each day. Below the choir, near the entrance to the ancient crypt where the nuns were buried, there are some surviving Colonial-era tombstones.
The convent cloisters – now occupied by the Mayab House of Culture – and the gardens covered a large area, extending to what is now 66th Street.
Another of the architectonic attractions of this building is the belvedere, which rises above the chancel dome and fetchingly recreates a mediaeval tower. It was built between 1645 and 1648, and is unique in the State. It consists of three corridors with round arches originally protected by wooden bars.
The tower, which is reached by means of a spiral staircase, was used by the nuns to find solace in contemplating the gardens and orchards of the city from on high, safe from indiscreet attention. From this point they would also receive donations “by means of small baskets, thus avoiding direct contact between the residents and their friends or family”.
It is also reasonable to suppose that the tower served a devotional purpose, since from there the nuns could watch and participate in the many processions that wound through the streets of Merida – whether it be at Easter, on the feast of Corpus Christi, or to honor the Christ of the Blisters – without leaving the convent.
Equally interesting is the old doorway located on 64th Street, above which sits the crest of the Conceptionist Order, composed of the Instruments of Christ’s Passion, or Arma Christi.
Of the altarpieces and artwork from the Colonial period that once graced the church, nothing survives. There is only a bell resting in the gardens of the ex-convent to bear witness to its foundation, long ago. The date of its manufacture is engraved on it: 1591, making it the oldest in Yucatan, and an inscription on the top reads: “THE GOVERNOR ANTONIO DE VOZMEDIANO HAD ME MADE, YEAR 1591.”
The convent operated for a little over 270 years, until the 12th of October 1867, when the nuns were evicted in compliance with the Reform Laws, which decreed the abolition of religious orders. The last nun from Merida’s ancient convent was sister Carolina de la Divina Providencia Medina, who died in 1906.
At the same time, one of the most drastic alterations to the convent was made: a thoroughfare was opened through the middle, now 66A Street, between 61st and 63rd, but then known as “Juárez Street”, and the properties to the west of this street were sold.
In its 400 years, the convent complex has suffered a series of transformations, adaptations, demolitions and diverse uses. During its first 300 years it had various functions: apart from its religious role it provided medical services and religious education, it was an orphanage, and also a shelter for girls, both rich and poor.
In 1906, after having remained closed for two years while major restoration work was carried out inside, the Nuns Church was re-opened with a formal religious ceremony. In 1915, the church was sacked and expropriated, until it was returned to the clergy in 1929. For several decades the historic site was in the care of the Fathers of the Holy Spirit, who left a significant stamp among the people of Merida. Today it is tended by members of the Congregation of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri.
In conclusion, we are looking at one of the oldest and most important jewels of sacred art in the State. Not only because of its history, which aids our understanding of contemporary society and of the city itself, but also because of its idiosyncratic architectonic features and layout. The result is an heirloom which deserves to be known, preserved and valued.
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