Tihuatlán: Monuments, Religious Art and Culture

If you are looking for a hotel in Tihuatlán, the town’s monuments and cultural attractions can help you focus your interests when planning your trip. The artworks vary in material, form and location; there is also a museum with a pre-Columbian focus and a festival tradition in October. For your plans, it is worth distinguishing between the site-specific features and the time-limited festival event.

Monuments and Religious Art

The Reloj Musical is a 27-meter-high tower covered in mosaic and featuring a musical clock. It is considered a landmark that defines Tihuatlán. At the entrance to the town stands the Monumento a la Divina Mujer, on a triangular area landscaped as a green space. The obelisk refers to the Náhuatl-language interpretation “Place of Women” or “Place of the Divine Woman.” The clock tower and obelisk differ not only in form but also in their defining features: music and mosaic in one case, a linguistic and cultural interpretation in the other.

The Monument Danza de la Vaca stands on a small plaza at the end of Avenida Cuauhtémoc on Cerro del Toro; it was made of fiberglass in 1980. Behind and below the monument is the Danza de la Vaca mural, with seven representative paintings. The same name appears here in two forms: as a fiberglass monument and as a mural featuring a series of paintings. The sculptural work and the painted depiction can therefore be viewed as different artistic interpretations of the motif.

La Cruz del Panteón, a reinforced-concrete cross, stands at the entrance to the old cemetery. It is decorated with roses, tears, doves, angels and geometric ornaments; at its center is a replica of Michelangelo’s “Pietà.” The many motifs are arranged around this central image. In front of the cemetery entrance stand the Los Ángeles Guardianes del Panteón: two upright white angels on mosaic-covered pedestals. They were completed in December 2007. While the cross features a central image, the angel ensemble is defined by its pair of figures.

El Ángel, a cement sculpture of a kneeling angel in a fountain, is located at the intersection of Calle Cuauhtémoc and Calle Reforma. The fountain has a circumference of 2.50 meters. La Divina Mujer Tihuateca is located below the base structure of Cerro del Cristo Redentor.

Museum and Festival Tradition

Tihuatlán’s only museum is located in the public library. It displays pre-Columbian culture as well as copies of codices from the 14th century. The codex copies provide a specific historical reference point, while the topic of pre-Columbian culture offers a broader historical context. The museum’s focus thus differs from the religious motifs of the monuments.

The Danza de la Vaca is also associated with a performance tradition: it is performed at dawn on October 4, the feast day of the patron saint San Francisco de Asís, to the sounds of drums and flute. In the municipality of Tihuatlán, the religious patron saint festival in honor of the town’s patron saint is celebrated from October 4 to 8; it includes the dances of the Malinche and the Vaca. The day of the Vaca performance therefore falls within the multi-day festival period. The specific program may vary from year to year. If you would like to plan your trip around the festival, check the event dates in advance.

Parque Infantil Cri-Cri adds a glimpse into the town’s history of development: its mechanical rides were funded through fundraising campaigns, and the park was later renovated. The municipality of Tihuatlán is also home to archaeological ruins in the communities of Acontitla and San Nicolás, which are among its tourist destinations.

Discover more destinations: Tecolutla, Estanzuela, Alto Lucero, Papaloapan, Alvarado, Nautla, San Andrés Tuxtla, Ursulo Galván

For the broader travel overview: Veracruz.