Barro & Cerro de la Cruz: Unveiling the Pre-Hispanic Archaeological Zone
Symbolic vestiges
This archaeological zone is located next to the San Juan River, just south of the city. Most of the vestiges of this pre-Hispanic settlement are now under the streets and houses of the Cruz neighborhood.
The north of Mesoamerica was abandoned by an agricultural group at the beginning of the second millennium and these territories were occupied by hunting groups known as Chichimecas, until the arrival of the Spaniards.
The Río San Juan can be considered at that time as the border between these Chichimeca groups and the farmers located to the south of this river.
The archaeological zone was mainly recognized by the historian Rafael Ayala, who contributed important data about it and diffused them in his book: San Juan del Río, Geografía e Historia.
This site is one of the most important in the state of Querétaro due to its long history of occupation that goes from 500 BC to 1000 AD, during which time it had both population and architectural changes.
