Title: "Building and Builders in Hispanic California, 1769-1848." An illustrated presentation by Dr. Rubén G. Mendoza for the National Endowment for the Humanities Landmarks of American History and Culture Workshop for K-12 Teachers convened at Mission San Carlos Borromeo on July 17, 2013.

1. Building and Builders in Hispanic California, 1769-1848
Presented by
RUBEN G. MENDOZA, PhD, RPA, Project Archaeologist
Mission San Carlos Borromeo, Carmel, California – July 17, 2013

2. Terribilis est locus iste: hic domus Dei est, et porta coeli; et vocabitur aula
Dei. ["Awesome is this place: it is the house of God, and the gate of
Heaven; and it shall be called the court of God."]”
The Roman Missal

3. San Juan Bautista, La Virgen, and San Francisco layout the foundations of the church, Iglesia de San Francisco, Chile.

4. Historical Antecedents

5. Model of King Solomon temple – the
archetype for the iconography of the
millennial kingdom.
Juan Gerson’s Heavenly Kingdom at
Tecamachalco, Mexico. Photo
courtesy Jaime Lara.

6. Catedral Metropolitana de la
Asunción de María, México City,
México (1573-1813).

8. San Estevan Rey, Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico. Constructed in 1629, this church integrates an equinox-based azimuth
alignment. Photo © Ruben G. Mendoza, 1995.

9. Mission Nuestra Señora de la Purísima Concepción de Acuña, San Antonio, Texas, 1731.

10. Santiago Jalpan, Querétaro,
México (1751-1758).

11. Las Misiones de Alta California

15. The site of Mission San Carlos Borromeo evolved through the construction of seven churches, five of which were oriented
to the summer solstice sunrise event. Fray Serra’s personal bible incorporates depictions of the Heavenly Kingdom.

16. Epiphany illumination of June 8th as seen from choir loft, San Carlos Borromeo, Carmel, CA.
Photo © Ruben G. Mendoza, 2012.

17. Architectonic Features

18. Architecture Through Time / Mission San Juan Bautista, California. Map plan by Ruben G. Mendoza / Emily Nisbet, 2012.

19. Map plan, Nuestra Señora La Purisima Concepcion (Vieja), Lompoc, CA. California State Parks.

20. La fachada or façade of Mission San Miguel Arcangel, California.

21. Mission church of 1825, Santa Clara de Asís. Note icon of Holy Spirit at apex of façade with rays
of light streaming downward. University of Santa Clara Archives image, 2003.

22. First light at the Presidio chapel of Santa Barbara, California. Note sunlight descending on window at circa 7:14 am on
December 23rd of 2008. Photos © Ruben G. Mendoza, 2008.

23. CyArk 3D cutaways of Mission San Juan Bautista, California.

24. Oculus or “traga luz” in façade of church at Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, California.
Photo © Ruben G. Mendoza, 2004.

26. Longitudinal section through the Santuario at Chimayo, New Mexico, built
between 1814 and 1816, showing the clearstory window.
The altar screen or reredos of the Santuario at Chimayo, New Mexico receiving natural
light from a clerestory window.
Quarai Mission, New Mexico.

27. Window port at apex of dome within church at Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, California. Photo © Ruben G. Mendoza,
2004.

28. Virtual reconstruction of the nave and arcade within the church at Old Mission San Juan Bautista. 3D
animation graphics by Ruben Mendoza, Francisco Rivas, and Luis Alejandre, 2008.

29. Chapel interior with mid-afternoon sunlight, Presidio of Santa Barbara, California.
Photo © Ruben G. Mendoza, 2004.

30. The bell wall or campanario of Mission San Gabriel Arcangel, California.

31. The bell wall or campanario of Mission San Ines, California.
Tile making form from Mission San Fernando, California.

32. Corinthian / Egyptian-like columns of the retablo mayor or reredos of Mission San Miguel Arcangel, California.

33. The River of Life motif in the redwood plank door
of the Guadalupe Chapel, San Juan Bautista,
California.

34. The side-aisle and nave of Mission San
Juan Bautista, California.
The plaza-side portada or arcade of Mission San Juan
Bautista, California.

35. The courtyard or patio-side arcade and church of Mission San Miguel Arcangel, California.

36. Fire tile or ladrillos used in the flooring and doorway portadas at Mission San Juan Bautista, California.

37. El Presidio Real de San Carlos de Monterey

38. The carved stone façade of the Royal Presidio Chapel or San Carlos Cathedral has been designated a
registered National Historic Landmark.

39. Recent archaeological investigations at the Royal Presidio Chapel serve to confirm that Jose Cardero’s
1791 illustration was accurate and well proportioned. This and related facts lend credence to the
likelihood that Cardero employed a Camera Lucida to produce his images. Image courtesy of the
Archives of the Diocese of Monterey.

40. Jose Cardero sketch depicting thatched-roof 2 nd Chapel of 1771-72, with scaffolding of 3 rd Chapel and
Padre’s Quarters in background. Note sacristy lean-to structure to the right of the cross standing at the
northwest corner of 2nd Chapel. View south/southwest, circa 1791. Courtesy RPC Archives.

41. View to the southwest of the Royal Presidio Chapel of Monterey in 1847. Note Baptistery of 1810 at
southeast wall of nave. Photo Courtesy RPC Archives of the Diocese of Monterey.

42. On July 23rd of 2008 the RPC Project Manager informed me via cell phone that contractors had
inadvertently exposed boulders at the forefront of the Chapel while removing brick pavers. My crew
and I immediately implemented measures to fully document the find and mitigate further damage to
what I believed to constitute remains of the as yet unexplored 2 nd Chapel.

43. By the end of the first day of exploratory exposures of the foundation footings of the 2 nd Chapel, a
granite and basalt boulder pavement overlain with Roman Mortar – consisting of a lime, gravel, and
sand floor composite – was identified. By the third day, the discovery became a front page media
story.

44. The granite and blue basalt boulder pavement constituting the substrate of the 2 nd Chapel floor
included non-native stone that may have been culled from a ship’s ballast stones. The bronze higa
(lower right) was recovered from the southeast corner of the pavement so noted.

46. The excavation of the sanctuary area of the 2 nd Chapel was conducted under a compliance
archaeology mandate, and salvage effort, intended to document and mitigate damage to the
structure in question. Contractors ultimately opted to avoid grading away the Chapel footings.

47. Upon mapping the crypt’s location within the overall plan of the Royal Presidio Chapel, it soon became
apparent that pre-1858 construction of said crypt required excavation through the Terrace 1 feature
located beneath the north walls of the east and west arms of the Transept .

48. Detail of Trench Plan – West Side – with numbered features associated with the Missionary’s
Quarters.

50. San Carlos Cathedral

51. Media coverage, including the expert commentaries by Center for Spanish Colonial Archaeology
archaeologist Jack Williams, narrowly averted the potential destruction of the 2 nd Chapel of 1771-72.

52. Both
subsurface
and
vertical
archaeology findings went far in the
interpretation of the 1810-11 Sacristy.
The ridge-pole of the Sacristy was
anchored to the west exterior face of
the Chapel nave.
In addition to determining that the Sacristy was
constructed of adobe blocks composed from
dark trash midden clays, the exterior facing of
the nave (or Sacristy east interior wall face)at
this location was composed of a dark limemud mixture.

53. The black floral pattern of the lower register constitutes the second major painting scheme to
appear, and was found to have been applied to the Portadas installed in circa 1810.

55. In order to access the crypt it was first necessary to circumvent the decrepit wooden ladder left
behind during the 1942 retrofit. Though I offered CSU Monterey Bay student Adrian Lopez the
opportunity to enter the crypt before me, his startled response was: “No, you go first!” Note boveda
or barrel vault to far left. Sealed wall to right of ladder is thought to have been original entry to crypt.

56. Upon entering the crypt, eight chambers – seven replete with burials -- came into view at the north
wall. Ominously, the crypt to the far right remains available for yet another occupant.

57. Right: Sculpted shale crucifix.
Top: Sculpted shale candle stand.
The unused crypt.
Left: Remains of the plank ceiling consisting of tablas.
This research has determined that the crypt was constructed some time prior to the 1858 Transept
retrofit. A vault or boveda permitted the enclosure of the pre-existing chamber.

58. Because the RPC Project team sought information on whether or not the crypt floor was intact, or
whether mud intrusion had filled what constituted the original floor, an archaeological assessment was
undertaken. Within ten centimeters of the surface, the project identified the shale bedrock flooring of
the chamber and its artifacts.

59. On January 25th of 2009, the Royal Presidio Chapel was re-dedicated and opened to the public…in a
ceremony held on the 214th anniversary of the original dedication of this most historic chapel in
Monterey.

60. La Guadalupana is
the preeminent icon
of Marian devotion in
the Americas. This
likeness of her,
sculpted under the
supervision of Mexico
City master mason
Manuel Ruiz in the
1790s, constitutes the
oldest such sculpted
monument in
California and the
West.
On October 22nd of 2009, the centerpiece of the façade of the Royal Presidio Chapel was returned to
its rightful place within the nicho after a 2.5 year conservation treatment.

61. During the course of archaeological
monitoring,
a
host
of
secondary
discoveries were made in situ. Among
such findings, the re-discovery of the 1905
marble commemorative marker that once
marked the location of the “Junipero
Oak” was paramount.

62. An Architectural Evolution of San Juan Bautista

63. SJB Archaeology Base Map, 2009
Plans by Jeff Lorentz of WWD. Surveys by Joe James of WWD
& Ruben G. Mendoza, 1995-2009

64. Phase 01: 1797
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

65. Phase 02: 1798
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

66. Phase 03: 1800-1801
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

67. Phase 04: 1801-1802
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

68. Phase 05: 1803
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

69. Phase 06: 1809
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

70. Phase 07: 1810-1812
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

71. Phase 08: 1812-1813
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

72. Phase 09: 1812-1816
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

73. Phases 01-09: 1797-1816
Quadrangle map plan by Ruben G . Mendoza, 2010.
Based on surveys by Joe James of WWD & Ruben G.
Mendoza, 1995-2009. AutoCad base map prepared
by Jeff Lorentz of WWD Engineering.

74. Mission Nuestra Señora de la Soledad

75. Identification of altar de La Iglesia de la Mision de
la Dolorisima Soledad.

76. Rediscovery of Soledad Church west wall
courtyard doorway and teja-tile footing
fill/stucco.

77. Archaeological investigations included a number of key discoveries regarding architectural practice in
the California missions. Among these, the recycling of teja roof tiles as a rodent barrier in adobe walls.

78. The Black Plat of 1859 provides indications for the location of the Neophyte Housing Area. Note “Ruins
of Adobe Houses” at Section 5.

79. Illustration depicting Neophyte housing in Bay Area of northern California.

80. The Neophyte Housing Area digs

81. Survey probe and field mapping of
subsurface features in the Neophyte
Housing Area. The tilled fields posed a
significant challenge in the search for the
buried housing area.

82. This ground stone mano
was recovered from within
a Neophyte Housing Area
room block.

83. The Soldiers’ Quarters
Recovery of the foundation footings of the Soldiers’
Quarters of circa 1805. Current evidence indicates
that the east end of the building was obliterated
some years ago.

84. Soledad Neophyte Housing Area room block trench cross section.

85. Soledad GPS survey of Neophyte Housing relative to Mission Quadrangle.

86. Soledad Neophyte Housing Area field maps.

87. Archaeology and primary resource documents resulted in the discovery of the Neophyte Housing Area
at Mission Soledad. Map plan © Ruben G. Mendoza, 2010-12. Illustration by Emily Nisbet, 2012.

88. Left: California Indian muleteer, Bancroft Library
Top: Artists conception of the Mission casco or quadrangle as seen from the Neophyte Housing Area at
Mission Soledad based on Mendoza 2012. Illustration after Oriana Day by Emily Nisbet, 2012.