Antigua’s doorways: why are the doors so big

Doorway #15 on Calle de las Campanas

If you have paid any attention to doors that have appeared on this site, you might have asked yourself, are Guatemalans giants? Quite the opposite should be the answer for most Guatemalans. People here start drinking coffee at a very early age and thus do not grow very tall. So, why do Guatemalans in Antigua have big doors? so they can enter the house mounted on the horse. That is right, I said horse. Not many people come into their homes riding on their horses at present time, but if you remember this is a colonial town and in colonial times that was how people came into the houses.

© 2006 – 2013, Rudy Giron. All rights reserved.

7 thoughts on “Antigua’s doorways: why are the doors so big”

  1. Oh, I love that! Some of the larger, wider doors I thought might be for auto access. But allowing in horseback riders makes so much sense! The doors open into a courtyard and not directly into the living space, right?

    Reply
  2. Marie, the modern horse is a car, which has changed a bit the configuration of the doorway, which in Spanish is called Zaguán.

    Kim, did you notice the little child in the picture? There is a little girl next to woman.

    Reply
  3. Anonymous: Maybe I am putting too much weigth on coffee, but caffeine causes Osteoporosis (Calcium loss) and if this loss happens to be a the age you are growing up, I imagine you are not going to grow too tall.

    Louise: You do not a horse to make use of these large doors, as you can see, people have made smaller doors, sometimes within the big door.

    Pamela: Likewise, I too learn through the publication of this blog. Although I did know about coffee and growth since High School. You can check the caffeine frequently asked questions below.

    Caffeine FAQ

    Reply

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