They are known as the missions of the Sierra Gorda.

There are others he constructed, to be sure; the California missions are famous around the world. But the most splendid of all of Serra's missions, the ones in Mexico, are themselves a paradox.

These particularly marvelous monuments rest among the mountains in Queretaro state, all within a few minutes drive of each other. They are the crowning jewels of the pueblos of Jalpan, Concá, Tilaco, Landa, and Tancoyol.