Our Mission
Patronato San Xavier funds and directs ethical conservation, conducts scientific research, and conveys the significance of Mission San Xavier del Bac, a National Historic Landmark in the community of Wa:k, part of the Tohono O’odham Nation.
Patronato Annual Report
Graphs providing information about income and expenditure across Patronato’s last fiscal year (2022 – 2023). We also provide a listing of current donors across the last fiscal year. Check to see that we have captured your information accurately.
Take a Self-Guided Virtual Tour of Mission San Xavier
To take 360-degree self-guided tour of the Mission, click on the link below, then scroll down past the photo of the Mission to the section that says “Tour Inside”. Once there, click on the white circles with black arrows to follow the tour through the Church, the Mortuary, and the Museum Rooms. Patronato San Xavier extends many thanks to Visit Tucson, who have kindly allowed us to present this virtual tour of Mission San Xavier on our website.
Docent tours at the Mission!
On your next visit, join one of our fabulous Docents to learn all about the history, art, and architecture of the Mission. All public tours are donation based. Tour times vary by season. To see current times for Public Tours, click on the “Learn More” button below.
Special Group Tours and School Tours remain temporarily suspended.
Interested in joining our docent program? Contact: info@patronatosanxavier.org for more information.
Our Current Priority Project
Patronato San Xavier’s conservation team is preparing for our next major priority project on the retablo façade, the ornate decorative element surrounding the main entrance to the church. This is fast proving to be one of the more complicated and interesting conservation projects undertaken on the 18th century church. After a successful pilot project in Spring of 2024, the conservation team has a greater understanding of existing conditions and has honed methodology necessary for the next phase of work, set to begin in Fall of 2024.
Overall project goals include reducing the amount and appearance of incompatible repair materials—both for the health of the structure and for the aesthetic appearance of the facade—while doing minimal restoration and reconstruction to bring out the original design intent.
If you would like to support our work on the façade, consider making a tax-deductible contribution to our Conservation & Preservation Fund!
Our thanks to Robert Shea for this incredible shot of the blood moon over Mission San Xavier del Bac on January 31, 2018.
In The News
Mission entrance set for major restoration
BY HENRY BREAN / Arizona Daily Star
/ Conservators for San Xavier plan to give the building’s decorative facade a facelift. The ornate entrance to San Xavier Mission will soon get a much-needed facelift, thanks to a $749,000 grant from the National Park Service.
Conservators for the late-18th-century church plan to spend the next two to three years carefully stabilizing and restoring the building’s decorative facade, which dates back to the late 18th century and features statues of five saints guarded by a pair of lions.
San Xavier Mission’s unique Nativity scene gets manger makeover
Joseph’s broken leg has healed, and the angel has his wings back at San Xavier del Bac. Just in time for Christmas, worshipers at the 240-year-old church can say a prayer in front of the Nativity and rock the baby Jesus in his cradle, thanks to restoration work on the...
Two New Priority Projects
With the East Tower project completed in April, attention is now turning to two new large-scale projects; conservation of the interior art in the high dome and conservation of the iconic facade.