Mexican archaeologist receives July 7 medal

Mexico’s foremost archaeologist, Eduardo Matos, will be awarded the “July 7 Medal” Tuesday at the starting ceremony of the Third World Heritage Cities Congress, to be held in San Miguel de Allende.

The four-day gathering will feature 20 speakers who will focus on one of the UNESCO denominated cities, Puebla, the theme city for the entire Congress, which will conclude on July 10.

The July 7 medal is named after the July 7, 2008, when San Miguel de Allende was named a World Heritage city. Matos has also been awarded the “Henry Nicholson” medal by Harvard University, among many other worldwide recognitions.

Matos was the leading archaeologist in the digging for the old Aztec pyramids in downtown Mexico City. The findings of the excavation led to the publication of his now highly-regarded book “Major Temple.”

Congress organizers Adolfo Rubio and Lupe Meza made it a point in saying that this a “privately organized” event with scholarly objectives as all of the participating speakers are experts in their fields.

“The two previous congresses were a success and that’s what’s keeping us going on,” says Adolfo Rubio.

The Congress is sponsored by the Guanajuato state government and the local hospitality industry.

The main attraction this year will be the city of honor, Puebla, which is sending an entourage led by Puebla Tourism Secretary Roberto Trauwitz, who will be featuring all the amenities of “Angelopolis” (as Puebla is popularly known) with a novelty promotion called ”SENSORAMA: Know Puebla through your senses.” Traditional foods will also be showcased — like mole — and the presentation of a new beer brand called “Cinco de Mayo” in honor of the famous victory of the Mexican ragtag army against the mighty French invaders in 1862.

Several Puebla chefs will offer — for free — morsels of different dishes at Casa de Europa from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. during the congressional meeting.

Speaking specifically on World Heritage cities will be Gustavo Salinas from Zacatecas, Elena del Río who will talk about Tlacotalpan, as well as bullfighting expert Luis Niño de Rivera who will speak about the traditional bullrings.

San Miguel de Allende