In San Miguel de Allende, visitors can find finely crafted pieces both from the local region and from other areas in Mexico. Both the city's official craft market and the many other shops and bazaars around the city offer handmade crafts of carved wood, glass, cloth, silver, brass, wrought iron, stone and much more.

Such is the fame of the weaving made in this region, that when Maximilian arrived in Mexico to assume control of his empire, one of the gifts he received was a wooden box containing a fine poncho woven in San Miguel el Grande with the colors of the flag, and with the Mexican eagle in the center. And, two years after the façade of the parish church was completed, Pope Pius IX was sent a sarape with an embroidered design of the church portico in the center. All of this occurred in the eighteenth century.

 

Craft Market

 

Brass, pottery, wool, papier-mâché, wrought iron, carved wood, blown glass, antiques and much more is on display for browsing and buying at the Mercado de Artesanías, or "craft market" on Calle Loreto.

 

Built in the late 1980s, this is one of San Miguel's "don't miss it" places. It is just about the perfect place to buy traditional regional craftwork and unique souvenirs. The market is smack dab in the city center, very easy to get to, with two entrances: the main entrance on Calle Loreto, and a secondary access on Calle Colegio.