ABSTRACT
The Metropolitan Cathedral was built on part of the land covered originally by the Aztec Ceremonial Precinct. The construction of the foundations began around 1560 and advanced slowly and painstakingly. The Sagrario church, the bishopric and the chapel interact with the Cathedral, contributing to the complexity in the analysis of its movements. The old cathedral and the seminary also modified the stress history and the mechanical characteristics of the clay strata beneath them. The Sagrario was partially founded on the Cathedral’s foundation platform, and its western wall is common to both structures. The differential compressibility of the subsoil clay strata, due to the consolidation induced by the Aztec temples and structures pre-existing at the site, caused differential settlements from the beginning of the construction. The deformations produced in turn structural mis-alignment that was compensated during the construction stage by modifying the height of the columns and walls in order to level up the springing of the vaults.
