Constructed between 1699 and 1701, this one story adobe church is a well-preserved example of a Spanish Colonial mission. The interior has a beautiful 18th-century carved wood altar screen with spiral pillars, a hand carved pulpit and sounding board, an adobe altar and a rare early 17th-century painting on buffalo hide of San José.The church was rehabilitated in 1932 and today is a functioning parish church.

San José de la Laguna Mission and Convento is 40 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, off I-40 in Laguna (Laguna Pueblo). Photography is generally not allowed; call 505-552-6654 for further information.

Credits and Sources:

National Park Service. "Discover Our Shared Heritage American Southwest, A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary: List of Sites." http://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/amsw/sitelist.htm.

James M. Slack, Photographer, Courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Historic American Buildings Survey, Reproduction Number HABS, NM,31-LAGUP,1-1