Description of the attraction
Ospisio Cabañas is a hospital in the city of Guadalajara, the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco, one of the oldest hospital complexes in Spanish America. It was founded in 1791 to provide shelter for the sick and disadvantaged, the disabled and orphans.
Erected by order of the Bishop of Guadalajara, Freay Antonio Alcalde, the orphanage combined a workhouse, a hospital, an orphanage and an almshouse. The name of the complex goes back to the name of Juan Ruiz de Cabañas, who arrived in the Bishopric of Guadalajara in 1796, and together with the local architect Manuel Tolsom developed the plan for the complex.
The Mexican War of Independence, which lasted until 1821, and the death of Cabanas in 1823, delayed construction work. The construction was completed only in 1829. In the 1830s, the buildings were used as barracks and stables, but by 1872 more than 500 people were living in the hospital complex.
Since 1997, the shelter has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The harmony here is created by open and built-up spaces, simple design and impressive dimensions and, of course, the masterpieces of painting in the local chapel, which was decorated with excellent frescoes - the work of José Clemente Orozco, one of the greatest Mexican monumental painters. Orozco's painting combines the motives of the Mexican Indian culture and the Spanish culture.
All buildings, with the exception of the kitchen area and the chapel, are one-story and a little over 7 meters high. The chapel in the center is twice as high as the rest of the buildings, and its dome rises 2.5 meters above the ground.
