The Santa Prisca Cathedral was built in the 18th century with funds provided by the silver tycoon J0se de la Borda

Founded in 1529 by one of Hernan Cortes captains, Taxco remained an unkown village outside of Mexico until the discovery of a silver mother lode in the 18th century fueled the cities development. Sometime in the 1920’s as the silver mines were being played out, an American silversmith by the name of William Spratling came along and began teaching local people the art and science of  silversmithing in his own workshop. The result was that the crafting of silver started a creative and economic boom that still exists today. Taxco now has over 300 silver shops including open air markets, metal workshops, and high end boutiques where buyers from around the world come to stock their retail stores with a variety of earrings, necklaces, rings and other creations .of silver finery. Besides the silver shops Taxco has other tourist attractions such as that old world ambiance of Spain with its winding cobblestone streets and small plazas, an  aerial tram, good restaurants, some impressive architecture, Los Pozas Azules and several silver museums including the William Spratling museum dedicated to his contributions. For additional details, see the photo gallery below.

The village of Taxco was built on a hillside and is also one of Mexico’s pueblo magico’s

The main plaza is in front ot the Santa Prisca Cathedral. There is outdorr entertainment here most every night

The Santa Prisca Hotel is conviently located only a block away from the main plaza. It is also a clean, quiet and economical place to stay in the centro area where most room rates are very pricey.

There are a many street vendors in town that sell a variety of merchandise besides silver jewlery

Los Pozas Azules is a natural spa on the outskirts of town. Several pools such as this are created by a cascading stream of water which is a crystalline blue color during the dry season but becomes muddy during the rainy season.

A side view of the Santa Prisca cathedral and surrounding buildings

a high end silver jewelry boutique