ABSTRACT
Imaginary doors barricade knowledge of the past. While on occasion we can pry them open, there are infinite instances when they are definitively sealed, allowing only uncertain peeks through diminutive keyholes. This limitation makes the study of a centuries-old city like San Juan a fearsome task. Should we trust the distorted images we think we see through the spyholes of our own making? Complications multiply, for most aspects related to the urban ideals guiding the early stages of the Spanish Conquest in the Caribbean are dimly understood. Vast lacunae exist regarding how, when and why things were done the way they were. This examination of San Juan’s urban and architectural development is a scrutiny through a dark mirror of events that took place centuries ago about which next to nothing has been written. Acceptance of this reality and its limitations is central to this interpretative analysis.
