Pueblo and Spanish Origins of New Mexico Architecture

Pueblo Origins

The architecture of New Mexico started out as the buildings of the original indigenous people. It was less a style and more a reflection of the climate, available building materials (with its strengths and limitations), and spiritual beliefs.

By the time the Spanish arrived, pueblo architecture had become distinctive. Communities of contiguous flat-roofed houses were built of adobe formed into long low bands called puddled adobe. Flat roofs were built of horizontal beams and crossed poles overlaid with earth. There were few openings for entrances and light.

The community often looked like a construction of cubes, each level set back from the level underneath, creating a geometric look. A fine example is the Taos Pueblo. In other places these constructions were grouped around a court. Other architectural features, born of practical matters, included outside ladders leading to upper stories.

Stones were also used in construction but without tools to shape the pieces, they were used as found, with builders carefully selecting the most appropriate stones and then using mud mortar in the joints.

Spanish Design

When the Spanish came, they brought the technique of shaping mud into bricks making construction faster and easier. The early Spanish buildings also used thick earth walls, flat roofs with beams and cross pieces overlaid with earth. But the Spanish favored a single file of rooms built around a courtyard, reached through a front gate and a covered passageway. A second courtyard functioned as a corral surrounded by storerooms and sheds. The Martinez house near Taos built in 1827 is considered one of the best remaining examples of the architecture.

More New Mexico Architecture

The design of the towns reproduced the design of the houses – enclosed and fortified compounds with a solid outside wall. Within the town the private dwellings each formed a kind of miniature plaza. This can be seen in Albuquerque’s Old Town and the historic part of Santa Fe.

The other Spanish architecture was that of the mission churches found in the pueblos and rural towns. The design elements of these buildings formed the basis of Mission style, although it was more highly developed in California than in New Mexico.

Pueblo and Spanish Origins of New Mexico Architecture First there were the people of the pueblo and the buildings they constructed for practical reasons, out of materials close by. Then, the Spanish came with more technology and ideas about what they wanted and needed from their buildings. Each fertilized the other, creating a vibrant distinctive style found across much of New Mexico. Pueblo Origins The architecture of New Mexico started out as the buildings of the original indigenous people. It was less a style and more a reflection of the climate, available building materials (with its strengths and limitations), and spiritual beliefs. By the time the Spanish arrived, pueblo architecture had become distinctive. Communities of contiguous flat-roofed houses were built of adobe formed into long low bands called puddled adobe. Flat roofs were built of horizontal beams and crossed poles overlaid with earth. There were few openings for entrances and light. The community often looked like a construction of cubes, each level set back from the level underneath, creating a geometric look. A fine example is the Taos Pueblo. In other places these constructions were grouped around a court. Other architectural features, born of practical matters, included outside ladders leading to upper stories. Stones were also used in construction but without tools to shape the pieces, they were used as found, with builders carefully selecting the most appropriate stones and then using mud mortar in the joints. Spanish Design When the Spanish came, they brought the technique of shaping mud into bricks making construction faster and easier. The early Spanish buildings also used thick earth walls, flat roofs with beams and cross pieces overlaid with earth. But the Spanish favored a single file of rooms built around a courtyard, reached through a front gate and a covered passageway. A second courtyard functioned as a corral surrounded by storerooms and sheds. The Martinez house near Taos built in 1827 is considered one of the best remaining examples of the architecture. More New Mexico Architecture Development of Pueblo Revival The Opening of the Santa Fe Trail Changes New Mexico Architecture - Territorial Style New Directions of New Mexico Architecture Today The design of the towns reproduced the design of the houses – enclosed and fortified compounds with a solid outside wall. Within the town the private dwellings each formed a kind of miniature plaza. This can be seen in Albuquerque’s Old Town and the historic part of Santa Fe. The other Spanish architecture was that of the mission churches found in the pueblos and rural towns. The design elements of these buildings formed the basis of Mission style, although it was more highly developed in California than in New Mexico. © 2009
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