Old Mission Dolores Museum

The Old Mission Dolores Museum houses a remarkably rare piece of history that remained hidden from the public eye for over two centuries. Behind the massive baroque altar screen at the front of the mission, there is an original mural painted by the mission's indigenous inhabitants in the late eighteenth century. This artwork, which features the sacred hearts of Jesus and Mary, was concealed in seventeen ninety-six when the ornate wooden screen was installed over it. Because the screen acted as a shield against light and damage, it inadvertently preserved one of the most significant examples of art from the era of initial contact between European settlers and the Ohlone people.