Travel Guide Sombrerete

This city, 165 kilometres from Zacatecas, was founded in 1555 by Juan de Tolosa. In addition to the activities of extraction of precious metals, from the XVIIth century it hosts a Caja Real which collects taxes, but also becomes a center of foundry and transformation of metals which came from the more northern regions; it installs its own Casa de Moneda in 1810. Since its foundation, it has been a transit area, the starting point for exploration and evangelization missions to the vast expanses of the north. It still proudly preserves many colonial monuments: mansions, a dozen baroque churches, squares and arcades follow one another along the wide cobbled streets of this small town set in the mountain foothills. Sombrerete is also the gateway to the Sierra de Órganos and the ideal place from which to visit the archaeological site of Altavista. The whole area was added to the World Cultural Heritage in 2010.