St. John the Baptist Cathedral, Tulancingo, Neoclassical cathedral in Tulancingo, Mexico

St. John the Baptist Cathedral is a colonial-era church in Tulancingo, Hidalgo, Mexico, facing the main square La Floresta. Built from 1528 by the Franciscans and remodeled in 1788 by José Damián Ortiz de Castro, it has gray quarry-stone walls nearly a meter thick and a neoclassical facade with a triangular pediment on two Ionic columns and pilasters reaching 27 meters. Two small single-body towers flank the entrance, and an octagonal dome with a lantern rises above.

The church was founded in 1528 under Franciscan direction, making it one of the earliest religious buildings established in the region after the Spanish arrival. Centuries later, in 1788, architect José Damián Ortiz de Castro carried out a major redesign that gave the building the neoclassical look it has today.

The cathedral stands at the main plaza of Tulancingo, and the square around it becomes a gathering point during local celebrations. During major religious dates, people set up stalls and gather outside as much as inside, turning the whole area into a shared space.

The cathedral is open every day, and during religious holidays the doors tend to stay open longer than usual. It sits right on the main plaza, so arriving on foot is easy and gives you a chance to explore the surrounding square before or after your visit.

The facade's triangular neoclassical pediment is held up by two Ionic columns and pilasters on each side of the entrance, reaching 27 metres, while the whole building rises over 54 metres to the cross on its octagonal dome. Its walls are nearly a metre thick, built of large stone blocks.