Actopan, Hidalgo, San Nicolás de Tolentino, stairwell frescos

Well preserved 16th century black and white frescos cover the walls of the cloister walk, as well as those along the large stairwell uniting the cloister’s two stories. Amongst the most beautiful in Mexico, they portray Augustinian monks at their daily activities. Scholar Pablo de Gante states that these murals, inspired by black and white Flemish prints, might very well be by the hand of the friar Martín de Acevedo.

The endurance of many such 16th century frescos, such as those in Actopan, Acolman, Cuernavaca, Epazoyucan, Malinalco, Oaxtepec, Tepeaca, Tlalmanalco and Tula de Allende, which have for centuries successfully resisted outdoor exposure to the elements, can be ascribed to thick strata of lime which have often been discovered coating the frescos, concealing them but thankfully also preserving them for posterity.