アナワク高原都市のプラサとその機能

抄録

One of the features which Mexican cities established in ancient times and those of the modern era have in common is the public square, an open space around which the main functional elements of the town are arranged.
In Tenochtitlan, the capital of Aztec, each section had its own main square (PLAZA), where a market was often seen attracting a large crowd. The markets of this kind meanwhile turned to the Indian markets which are found in many parts of Mexico even now. The conquest having been completed, Cortes ordered Alonoso, Garacia and Bravo to draw up a plan for the new city with a square in the European style, but a good part of the Aztec city plan was preserved. There are a market (MERCADO), a square (PLAZA), a park (PARQUE), a cathedral (CATEDRAL) and a government office in the center (CENTRO) of the city.
Special market towns in Anahuac Highland are shown in Fig. 6.. In general, these towns are situated within 200km from Mexico D.F., and are usually historical sites or tourist resorts, producing handmade pottery. (Tab. 1)
The merket is held every day of the week and particularly thronged with people on the special day (a market day). Toluca market, for instance, is traditionally held on Friday, when the neighborhood natives come out to the market with their handmade sarapes, rebozos and pottery. Alamada Park near Plaza Zócalo, which was once an Aztec market, has changed into a holiday resort, a pleasant meetig place for the citizn. They have some band concerts on sunday afternoon. Lagnilla market, located close to this park, is much crowded on Sunday.
Thus, the plaza brings neighbors closer together and unify the people living in the town or the city. From this point of view, we might say that the plaza, which plays most important part as a meeting place of citizens, is the axis or the focal point, as well as the place for communication, of the community.