Misión San Francisco Javier de Viggé-Biaundó

Misión San Francisco Javier de Viggé-Biaundó was a Spanish mission in San Javier, Baja California Sur, Mexico.

History

Origins

The Spanish mission of San Francisco Javier was initially founded by the Jesuit missionary Francisco María Piccolo in 1699 at a spring called Biaundó by the native Cochimí, about 8 kilometers north of the mission's subsequent location.

Restablishment

The site was abandoned in 1701 because of a threatened Indian revolt, but was reestablished by Juan de Ugarte in 1702. Several years later, it was moved to the better-watered present location of the community of San Javier, Baja California Sur, Mexico. The energetic Ugarte constructed dams, aqueducts, and stone buildings. Between 1744 and 1758, Miguel del Barco was responsible for building what has been called "the jewel of the Baja California mission churches" (Vernon 2002:26).

Native population

Primarily under the ravages of Old World diseases, the native population declined steadily through the Jesuit period (1699–1768) and then more steeply after the missionaries of that order were expelled from Baja California.

Deserting

By 1817, the mission was deserted. The church has been restored and is now maintained by Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History.

See also

• Spanish missions in California

References

• Vernon, Edward W. 2002. Las Misiones Antiguas: The Spanish Missions of Baja California, 1683–1855. Viejo Press, Santa Barbara, California.

External links

• Virtual Reality Panorama of "The Stone Church at Mission San Javier"
• Virtual Reality Panorama "Inside the Mission Church at San Javier"