San Matias is a small church, serving a parish in Jalatlaco, a neighborhood in central Oaxaca that was once a Zapotec village before it became the stronghold of Spanish conqueror Francisco de Orozco.
No one really knows when San Matias was built, but it was certainly started by the end of the 1600s and finished in 1713. It was originally dedicated to Saint Catherine the Martyr, but was changed to San Matias in 1700.
The columns and capitals and facade decoration make San Matias unusual: the indigenous craftsmen who actually built the church worked traditional designs and motifs of their culture into the stonework.
One of the highlights of my stay in Oaxaca was attending two concerts using restored historic organs, and featuring two sections of choral music composed around 1720 by a young Zapotec man. The first concert was on the Cathedral’s 1711 organ; the second was on the possibly sweeter 1866 organ of San Matias.
Both concerts drew full crowds; at San Matias, all the pews were filled and extra chairs lined the walls.
