Viejo Portal de Mercaderes

The Viejo Portal de Mercaderes forms the long, arched western edge of the Zócalo, defined by a series of covered stone walkways. These arches were originally mandated by the city council in fifteen twenty-four, requiring property owners facing the main square to build structures that would offer merchants protection from the sun and seasonal rains. Melchor Dávila began construction on the first of these colonial sections in fifteen twenty-seven.