Sanctuary cupola & Altar de los Reyes

The high altar in the Capilla de los Reyes was based on a lost sketch by Spanish draftsman Sebastián López de Arteaga (1610-52), its construction supervised by Spanish architect Pedro García Ferrer (1583–1660), and its Baroque retablo with Solomonic columns executed by master craftsman Lucas Méndez, all at the auspices of the city's bishop Juan de Palafox (1600-59).

A detailed image of the high altar appears on page 120 of a lengthy legal document written (circa 1650) by the counsel of the Cathedral, a Spaniard by the name of Juan Alonso Calderón. Titled Memorial histórico, jurídico, político de la S. Iglesia Catedral de la Puebla de los Ángeles en la Nueva España, sobre restituirla las armas reales de Castilla, León, Aragón y Navarra que puso en la capilla mayor de su iglesia, de que ha sido despojada injustamente, its purpose was to request the restitution of royal, heraldic emblems that had been removed from the church.

The print of the retablo is from an engraving by Juan de Noort (Flanders, 1587–1652). De Noort never visited Mexico, working from descriptions to produce what remained for years the most celebrated and detailed representational reproduction of the famed altarpiece.