Taxco (full name: Taxco de Alarcón) is an antique colonial silver-mining center located in the northern reaches of the Mexican state of Guerrero. It is located at 18°33' N, 99°36' W, some 200 km. southwest of Mexico City along the old highway to Acapulco. It stands at a height of some 1800 m. above sea level in the western arm of the Sierra Madre. The city serves as the administrative center of the municipality of the same name, which covers a total area of 347 km² of the surrounding territory. Even though silver mining had been the main commercial activity of Taxco since colonial times, in the present silver mining is no longer considered a profitable activity, and the city is better known for its traditional silverwork, which attracts tourism throughout the year.
The city is built on the side of a mountain, with very steep narrow streets lined by whitewashed houses with red-tiled roofs. It is also renowned for its more than 200-year-old baroque-style church, the Santa Prisca Cathedral.
