The Templo de Santo Domingo is the finest church in San Cristóbal and one of the most beautiful colonial churches in southern Mexico. Built by the Dominican order beginning in the late 1500s and expanded in the 17th and 18th centuries, it has an elaborate churrigueresque facade in rose-coloured stone that glows warmly in the afternoon light. The interior is even more impressive: richly gilded altars, carved wood pulpit, and a ceiling decorated with elaborate polychrome work.
The attached former convent now houses the Centro Cultural de los Altos de Chiapas, which contains textile and weaving displays showing the traditions of the highland Maya communities. The quality of the Tzotzil and Tzeltal weavings on sale from women in traditional dress just outside the church is outstanding — this is the best place in San Cristóbal to buy textiles directly from the artisans who made them.
Just south of the church, the Mercado de Dulces y Artesanías sells sweets, amber jewellery, and handicrafts in an informal covered market. The whole area around Santo Domingo on weekend mornings becomes the liveliest part of the old town.