Cantera stone

Cantera is the volcanic stone you see all over Mexican architecture, from baroque churches to modern luxury hotels. It comes in different colors depending on the quarry: pink from Morelia, gray from Comonfort, café-brown from Oaxaca, white from Tepeji. The Spanish colonists used it from the 1500s onward for cathedrals, fountains and cloisters. Today it's the signature material for luxury hotels in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico City and the Riviera Maya, Capella, Rosewood, Las Alcobas, Banyan Tree all build with it. The stone is porous, so it weathers and patinas over time, which is exactly why architects love it. New cantera looks great. 100-year-old cantera looks even better.