IGLESIA DE LA ENSEÑANZA

On your way back to the Zócalo from Plaza Santo Domingo, take a detour left on Donceles to a church with an unusually narrow facade that now exhibits a severe backward tilt because of ground subsidence. Built in the 1770s as the Templo de Nuestra Señora del Pilar—but referred to as La Enseñanza (The Teaching) because it was founded by the Marianists, a teaching order—the former church has an impressive late baroque facade. But the real reason to visit the church is for the nine ultrabaroque, gilt retablos crammed into the small interior space. Infrequently visited, La Enseñanza (Donceles 104) is one of the Centro’s hidden treasures and merits a few minutes’ visit to marvel at the dazzling display inside. The church is packed on the feast day of its patron saint, Pilar, on October 12.