The Monumento a la Raza is an iconic 50-meter-tall pyramid in northern Mexico City. It’s located at the intersection of Avenida de los Insurgentes, Circuito Interior, and Calzada Vallejo, in the Cuauhtémoc borough’s San Simón Tolnáhuac neighborhood.

This striking concrete structure rises in three stacked, truncated pyramids. Its smooth, sloping walls are decorated with Mesoamerican-inspired reliefs. At the summit sits a massive copper-and-steel eagle, wings spread, devouring a snake on a nopal plant.

Monumento a la Raza is Mexico City’s towering tribute to heritage and identity.

Designed by Francisco Borbolla and Luis Lelo de Larrea, the monument blends Mesoamerican motifs with Porfirian-era artistic elements. Its reliefs and sculptures were largely created in the late 1800s for international exhibitions, including the Paris Exposition.

The eagle, originally crafted by French sculptor Georges Gardet for the Federal Legislative Palace, never reached its intended home. The palace was abandoned following the Revolution, and its remains became the Monumento a la Revolución.

Construction of the Monumento a la Raza began in 1930 and concluded in 1940. It was inaugurated on October 12—Día de la Raza, a date meant to honor the diverse cultural roots of Latin America, especially Indigenous peoples and their descendants.

The term “La Raza” translates as “the people” and refers to the shared heritage of the Americas. The monument is a product of Mexico’s post-revolutionary era and its embrace of indigenismo—a celebration of Indigenous culture and national identity.

Four large bronze reliefs by Jesús Fructuoso Contreras crown each side of the monument’s top level. These pieces depict Nahua leaders Itzcoatl, Nezahualcoyotl, Totoquihuatzin, and Cuauhtémoc—symbolic figures of pre-Hispanic political and spiritual power.

Two large staircases flank the structure. One leads to the summit, the other to a now-inaccessible internal chamber. Serpent heads sculpted in volcanic stone guard the entrances, echoing those of ancient Tenochtitlan’s ceremonial centers.

Additional sculptures by Lelo de Larrea depict key moments in Mexican mythology: the founding of Mexico-Tenochtitlan and the defense of the Aztec capital against the Spanish. These narratives further anchor the monument in Indigenous identity.

The interior of the monument was originally intended to serve as a museum, but that plan was never realized. Instead, the space housed pumps and motors for the fountains that once surrounded the pyramid’s base.

Over the decades, the Monumento a la Raza has become a central reference point in the city. It lends its name to the surrounding district, as well as to key public services like La Raza Hospital and the La Raza Metro and Metrobús stations.

Despite its cultural significance, the monument fell into disrepair in the early 2020s. By 2022, it had been vandalized with graffiti and became an improvised shelter, suffering fire damage and the loss of several sculptural elements.

Lack of funding for maintenance had left the monument vulnerable. According to city records, no budget was allocated for its upkeep between 2018 and 2024, further accelerating its deterioration and public neglect.

Public concern eventually led to calls for its restoration. In 2025, efforts began to restore both the physical structure and its symbolic role. Restoration teams repaired the eagle, recast the reliefs, and cleaned the vandalized surfaces.

A new bronze-painted door replaced the old, and damaged sculptures were rehabilitated. Social workers also worked with unhoused residents occupying the site, highlighting the need to balance heritage with current urban challenges.

While critics like architect Carlos Obregón Santacilia and writer Nikito Nipongo have derided the monument as garish or historically inconsistent, its hybrid design reflects Mexico’s own complex cultural and political evolution.

Historian Mauricio Tenorio-Trillo observed the paradox of the monument: while it aims to celebrate Indigenous identity, it also incorporates symbols born from a Eurocentric and modernizing regime like the Porfiriato.

The Monumento a la Raza may not be universally loved, but its presence commands attention. As a fusion of pre-Hispanic symbolism and early 20th-century nationalism, it tells a layered story of identity, power, and memory in Mexico.

Today, the restored monument stands once again as a towering reminder of Mexico’s enduring Indigenous roots. Whether admired or critiqued, it continues to define one of the city’s most recognized and culturally significant urban landscapes.