Spanish Mission

The convents and churches founded by the Spaniards in California can scarcely be compared in complexity or ornamentation to those of Mexico, but it is perfectly true, as Dr. Baer says, that “even the more elaborate of the California churches . . . are notable for their restraint on the architectural decoration. . . .” Though undoubtedly fashioned after Mexican models, the California churches more than compensate for the lack of elaborate ornament in the poise, the beauty, and the equilibrium of their proportions, tending more to the classic than to the Baroque.