diff --git a/CHANGELOG b/CHANGELOG
index 0e208c93b4d7..b341d5191cee 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG
+++ b/CHANGELOG
@@ -17,6 +17,9 @@
            This allows backends to utilize additional text attributes, like
            the alignment of text elements. - pwuertz
 
+2012-11-26 deprecate matplotlib/mpl.py, which was used only in pylab.py and is
+           now replaced by the more suitable `import matplotlib as mpl`. - PI
+
 2012-11-16 plt.set_cmap no longer throws errors if there is not already
            an active colorable artist, such as an image, and just sets
            up the colormap to use from that point forward. - PI
diff --git a/doc/api/api_changes.rst b/doc/api/api_changes.rst
index 56fe16dca6bc..68f818b3ea68 100644
--- a/doc/api/api_changes.rst
+++ b/doc/api/api_changes.rst
@@ -24,6 +24,9 @@ Changes in 1.3.x
   :class:`~matplotlib.colorbar.ColorbarBase` allows one to control the shape
   of colorbar extensions.
 
+* The `~matplotlib.mpl` module is now deprecated. Those who relied on this
+  module should transition to simply using `import matplotlib as mpl`.
+
 Changes in 1.2.x
 ================
 
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/mpl.py b/lib/matplotlib/mpl.py
index 50f317f101d9..51e8a3204b73 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/mpl.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/mpl.py
@@ -1,3 +1,11 @@
+"""
+.. note:: Deprecated in 1.3
+"""
+import warnings
+from matplotlib import MatplotlibDeprecationWarning as mplDeprecation
+warnings.warn(
+    "matplotlib.mpl is deprecated and will be removed in version 1.4."
+    "Please use `import matplotlib as mpl` instead", mplDeprecation)
 from matplotlib import artist
 from matplotlib import axis
 from matplotlib import axes
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/pylab.py b/lib/matplotlib/pylab.py
index f5016019ab40..816b0dbb67d5 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/pylab.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/pylab.py
@@ -219,7 +219,10 @@
 from matplotlib.cbook import flatten, is_string_like, exception_to_str, \
      silent_list, iterable, dedent
 
-from matplotlib import mpl  # pulls in most modules
+import matplotlib as mpl
+# make mpl.finance module available for backwards compatability, in case folks
+# using pylab interface depended on not having to import it
+import matplotlib.finance
 
 from matplotlib.dates import date2num, num2date,\
         datestr2num, strpdate2num, drange,\