The Archaeological Zone of Teotihuacán in Mexico

Photo:á (Pyramid of the Moon). Theprominent mountain behind it is the sacred mountain  (Fat Mountain).

The archaeological zone of Teotihuacán is located in the State of Mexico, some 48 km north-east of Mexico City. Designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987, it is one of the most important and most visited archaeological sites in Mexico.

The city was built by a relatively little-known culture that reached its height between 100 B.C. and 750 A.D. It was abandoned by the time the Aztecs arrived in the area in the 1300s and gave it the name “Teotihuacán,” which means “the place where men become gods.” It was highly revered by the Aztecs who believed that gods created the universe here. It was an important place of pilgrimage for them from their base in Tenochtitlán, modern Mexico City.

Since no names, images or other references to rulers have been found in Teotihuacán’s stone carvings and exquisite murals, one theory is that city rule may have been shared among multiple leaders, its four precincts possibly ruled by alternating leaders.

Constructed around 300 AD, the holy city is characterized by the vast size of its monuments, carefully laid out on geometric and symbolic principles. The Pyramid of the Sun is the third-largest pyramid in the world surpassed only by the Great Pyramid of Cholula and the Great Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt.

The site’s most notable constructions are:

á (Pyramid of the Sun):

Located in the centre of the archaeological zone, this roughly 200 feet high and 700 feet wide monument towers over the other buildings.

The purpose of the Pyramid of the Sun is not entirely understood, but it is built on top of a sacred cave shaped like a four-leafed clover. Given the grand pyramid above, this cave was probably regarded as the very place where the gods created the world. The cave is not open to the public. Some experts believe it served as a royal tomb, while others have speculated that it represented a portal to the underworld.

Since the past few years, researchers from Mexico’s National Anthropology and History Institute (INAH) have been excavating tunnels and wells on their way to the Pyramid of the Sun’s elusive base. They have been inching toward the pyramid’s core, entering long-sealed tunnels and using ground-penetrating radar to navigate the maze. Their discoveries have revealed a collection of treasures on a pile of rubble at the pyramid’s centre. Thought to have been given as offerings to the gods, the items include pieces of obsidian, pottery, animal bones and three human figures; one of these, a delicately carved serpentine mask, is so lifelike that archaeologists believe it may have been a portrait. The trove’s position within the structure suggests it was placed there before construction began.

The first part of the Pyramid of the Sun was probably built around 100 BC. A temple once perched on its tallest steppe, accessible via precipitous stone staircases. By the time the pyramid was discovered and restoration was begun in the 20th century, the temple had disappeared, and the pyramid was just a mass of rubble covered with bushes and trees. It’s a worthwhile 248-step climb to the top. The view is extraordinary and the sensation exhilarating.

á (Pyramid of the Moon):

The second largest structure on the site, the 132 feet high pyramid has a huge temple and a staircase that leads to a platform and continues on to the top of the structure.

Excavations beneath the pyramid have revealed sacrificial burials with a wide variety of offerings including human skeletons, animal bones, jewellery, obsidian blades and previously unknown artwork. This discovery suggested that the Pyramid of the Moon was significant to the people of Teotihuacán as a site for celebrating state power through ceremony and sacrifice. Militarism was apparently central to the city’s culture.

(Temple of the Feathered Serpent):

This edifice, built in honour of Quetzalcoatl, is one of the site’s most important structures. The façade features fine, large carved serpents’ heads jutting out from collars of feathers carved in the stone walls; aquatic motifs of conches and seashells; and representations of Rain God Tlaloc. Other feathered serpents are carved in relief low on the walls. Archaeologists have excavated deep inside the pyramid and found more than 200 ceremonially buried skeletons of warriors, interred with precise detail and position. In addition, a single slain captive was placed at each of the pyramid’s four corners.

(Palace of the Quetzal Butterfly):

(Avenue of the Dead):

(Citadel):

It is the 400 metre complex at the southern end of the Avenue of the Dead. The Temple of the Feathered Serpent is the central pyramid of this large complex.

(Patio of the Jaguars):

The whole city of Teotihuacán seems to be aligned astronomically. It is consistently oriented 15 to 25 degrees east of true north, and the front wall of the Pyramid of the Sun is exactly perpendicular to the point on the horizon where the sun sets on the equinoxes. The rest of the ceremonial buildings were laid out at right angles to the Pyramid of the Sun. The Avenue of the Dead points at the setting of the Pleiades. Another alignment is to the dog star Sirius, sacred to the ancient Egyptians, which has led some to suggest a link between the great pyramids of Egypt and Mexico.

Other important deities at Teotihuacán included: the Rain God Tlaloc; Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent; the Sun God and Moon Goddess; and Xipe Totec, the god associated with renewed vegetation. Incense burners have been found related to the Old Fire God, a creator divinity possibly associated with the Spider Woman.

Although at its peak around 500 AD, the inhabitants of the great city had abandoned Teotihuacán 250 years later. The reason for this remains a mystery, but scholars have suggested a gradual decline caused by overpopulation and depletion of natural resources.

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