The Chapel of the Third Order stands just a block or so west of the main plaza in Atlixco. It actually rivals the main church, that of Santa María de la Natividad, in beauty and austerity.
The temple is not always open to the public. But even from beyond the gates, the church stands in silent testimony to a past that looked quite different.
The Third Order were a group of Spanish-born lay-Franciscans. Ineligible for the first two orders, the first being clergy, and the second, the sisterhood of Nuns, they nevertheless rose to prominence in their following of Saint Francis of Assisi. Mostly active during the late middle ages, they likely reached their height in Mexico in the 17th and 18th century. That’s part of the reason the church remains so prominent today.
According in INAH, the church likely began as a small hermitage in the 16th century. The building we see today was begun in the 17th and was completed already in the early 18th century. It stands among the most celebrated in the state of Puebla from this era. Carvings in gilded wood, and the Plateresque architectural style of the period stand out. The carvings bedeck the main altarpiece and several side altars.
Although it suffered some alterations that wouldn’t be tolerated today, in essence, the church remains one of the city’s most prized structures. Sculptures of Saints Peter and Paul, Anthony of Padua, and Saint Francis still stand proud within the interior.
Probably the most important though are ten paintings on the life of Saint Francis by Lorenzo Zendejas. He’s still considered the most outstanding representative of the Puebla School of Painting from the end of the 18th century.
The church is often visited in combination with walks to other sites within the historic center of Atlixco.
