ANTEQUERA, OAXACA, ARCHDIOCESE OF. — Comprises a large part of the state of Oaxaca, in the southern region of Mexico, on the Pacific coast. Erected as a diocese by Paul III on 21 June 1535, it was elevated to an archdiocese by Leo XIII on 23 June 1891, with jurisdiction over Antequera. To date, it has been governed by 30 bishops and two archbishops.
From the time of the conquest of Mexico, the region was evangelized by the Franciscans and Dominicans. At present, it has a Catholic population of 842,000 souls. The diocese is divided into 128 parishes, administered by 137 priests. The number of churches and chapels is about one thousand. A. possesses a Renaissance-style cathedral, begun in 1553 and almost entirely rebuilt in 1702; a seminary called S. Croce, founded by Msgr. Tommaso di Monterosso, tenth bishop of the diocese (d. 1665). Noteworthy are the convent of S. Domenico and the church of the same name, in Plateresque style, whose interior ornamentation is considered one of the richest in Mexico. The most famous shrine is that dedicated to Our Lady of La Soledad, patroness of the diocese.