A striking recent discovery is the fact that Acanceh seems to have always been the name of this place, as proven by an ancient hieroglyphic text found in the town and only recently read by epigraphers.

The word “Acanceh” means “Lament (groan) of the Deer” in the Yucatec Maya language.

The history of Acanceh is not well known.

There are no known stelae or other glyphic inscriptions that can help identify its rulers or associations with other city-states. What is known of its time frame has been deduced from the examination of pottery fragments, burials, and architectural styles.

Archaeologists and researchers have made associations with the central Mexican highlands (Tikal and Dzibilchaltun). Being so near to Merida, ancient T’Ho, it is hard not to imagine a relationship with that site as well.

Acanceh, unlike most others, was never fully abandoned as it is mentioned in several 16th and 17th-century sources.

The site of Acanceh was never fully abandoned, as it has been uninterruptedly occupied since the Preclassic until the present. Acanceh was founded sometime between 300 and 500, during the Early Classic period. The city was founded by the Itza people.

The first mention of Acanceh from an archaeological perspective was made by the French explorer-photographer Desiré Charnay in 1888, who spoke of structures built with finely carved blocks, not unlike other Maya buildings in the area.

Adela Breton visited the site in 1908 and painted a full-size color copy of the famous frieze at the Palace of the Stuccoes.

Teobert Maler also visited in 1908 and took several photos of the frieze which have been of great value in helping to understand the composition and nature of the frieze which has since dramatically deteriorated.

There followed Edward Seler 1911, T.A. Willard 1928, Miguel Fernandez 1933, George Brainerd 1958, and Andrews IV 1965, among others.

The first archaeological work to have ever taken place in this old town was done by Austrian explorer-photographer Teobert Maler, who reported a mound of loose stone in the town’s main square, underneath which he found remains of a once-vaulted chamber as well as stucco masks.

Nevertheless, Maler did not consolidate the building. It is important to mention that Maler also photographed the unusual and fascinating stucco reliefs for which the Palace of the Stuccos, the second major structure in Acanceh, is named.

By 1933, a Mexican scholar noted that the decoration reported by Maler was all but gone. Nevertheless, through the use of what remained and Maler’s photographs, he was able to draw a reconstruction of the building before consolidating it.

It turned out that the building was of a typical early (Late Preclassic to Early Classic) Petén configuration known as a radial pyramid: one that is square and has staircases oriented towards all four cardinal directions.

The loose stone, however, points to the fact that there once was a later construction covering the early building visitors see today. INAH began consolidations and restorations in 1996 which continue to the present time.

Very recently, Acanceh was the focus of a major archaeological effort, conducted by Beatriz Quintal.

Quintal’s project uncovered a great deal of the hitherto unexcavated Palace of the Stuccos, brought to light a previously ignored but substantial pyramidal building in the town, and found four spectacular giant stucco masks on the main temple’s eastern, western, and northern façades.

Judging from the style of the large masks, the building may have well been built in the Late Preclassic, marking Acanceh as an important urban center as early as some 2,000 years ago.

Quintal’s project also included a general survey of the ancient town, which determined the existence of a minimum of 160 structures spread over an area of more than two square kilometers.

This ancient Maya city covered more than 4 square kilometers and had about 400 buildings. Three of these buildings have been restored and are open to the public, although recent excavations have uncovered more structures.

Archaeologists date the ruins of Acanceh to 300 CE and the dawn of the Classic Era. At this stage in Maya history, the great cities were much farther south in Guatemala and the Chiapas region of Mexico.

There’s a reason to suspect that Acanceh wasn’t even founded by the Maya – its oldest carvings are evocative of Teotihuacan, a powerful empire from northern Mexico.

In a rare juxtaposition of the pre- and post-Columbian religions, Acanceh’s central pyramid is found right across from the town cathedral.

The main pyramid of Acanceh

The main pyramid fronts on the north side of the plaza in the center of the modern town.

Mayan structures in populated towns were almost always demolished by Spaniards so that their stones could be used as material for the new churches, but Acanceh’s pyramid was allowed to survive.

It was first unearthed and explored by Teobert Maler in 1908.

The base measures about 30 meters square, and the height has been calculated at about 11 meters. It has rounded, inset corners, apron moldings, and recessed stairways.

An early sub-structure exhibiting large sun-god masks of K’inich Ahau has been uncovered near the top of the pyramid. Two masks flank each of the four main stairways and were originally painted red.

Though vandalized, they are still very impressive and resemble very closely those found at the site of Kohunlich 272 km to the south, and at Izamal just to the north.

On the east side of the substructure a smaller, inset stairway leads up to an inner chamber. A burial was discovered under the chamber floor which held the remains of a male and female, presumably of noble lineage.

What is striking here is that there is a fair amount of original smooth stucco remaining on the pyramid surface, especially the inner stairway, which helps to show how these structures looked in their finished state when actually in use.

The sub-structure has been dated to the Late Pre-Classic (300 B.C.-200 A.D.).
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The upper portion of the pyramid was once protected by a thatch roof. Unfortunately during a town celebration a few years back fireworks set the thatch ablaze resulting in damage to some of the stucco decorations.

These were restored, and a metal roof was installed in its place.

Four-tiered pyramidal structure

Behind the main pyramid is a four-tiered pyramidal structure, Structure 1B.

Structure 1B is just to the northeast of the main pyramid with which it forms a courtyard. It is smaller, about 4.5 meters in height, and has centrally positioned south and north-facing stairways. A ruined masonry chamber crowns the summit.

A third pyramid that surrounded the plaza was reported on by Desire Charnay in 188 but was dismantled to build the local train station. No drawings or information on this structure survives.

Acropolis

The other significant structural complex to be seen is the Acropolis. This is a massive platform supporting the remains of numerous buildings. It measures roughly 50 meters square with a height of 8 meters.

Early reports mention structures with interior chambers that once depicted now lost painted murals.

Palace of the Stuccoes

The most significant structure is the Palace of the Stuccoes. This building, containing four vaulted rooms, was unearthed in 1906 by residents quarrying the site for building materials.

This practice, unfortunately, has been going on for centuries, and many sites have been severely disturbed while others destroyed and their history lost.

Contained on the upper north-facing facade of this structure is a magnificent stucco frieze, both in style and theme.

It exhibits a fabulous display of intricately molded stuccoed deities, animals, and birds, either in natural or anthropomorphic form, and all once brightly colored. It measures about 2 meters in height by 415 meters in length.

At the time of its discovery, there were 20 figures identified with an additional one thought destroyed. It was divided into two rows, painted in brilliant colors, and in near-perfect condition.

Through neglect and vandalism, it is now a pale shadow of its former self with many of the figures obliterated.

The frieze was first reported on by Adela Briton in 1908. Her colored paintings, and the photos taken by Teobert Maler later that year, are the best-known resources for interpretation.

The frieze is flanked by two large anthropomorphic birds whose wings contain flaked limestone chips embedded into the stucco to simulate feathers.

A series of 21 (possibly more) cartouches are divided in a staggered fashion into two registers.

The upper register shows mostly birds and animals that either fly or live in treetops, while the lower register exhibits terrestrial animals. Two individuals interspace the scene which has both an upper and lower border.

The upper border displays Central Mexican water/rain symbols, while the lower border may exhibit astronomical symbols. On the lower register, a squirrel that is depicted is very similar to one seen on the beautiful frieze located at Balam Ku.

One can only imagine how incredible this may have looked in its entirety if the frieze continued around the structure as some have suggested.

The frieze has baffled archaeologists as to just what it may represent. Some believe it could have astronomical connotations relating to the Zodiac. Others think that the figures may represent spirit companions, or that it is a depiction related to the Underworld.

A small structural group has recently received some attention. Structure 6 has been deemed an underground observatory, and dates to the Early Classic Period (200-600 A.D.).

The semi-circular structure is set within a raised platform base, though the observatory chamber itself does not penetrate below ground level. During the equinox, the Sun enters through an opening in the stone roof and displays no shadow to those gathered below.

The Parroquia de Nuestra Senora de la Natividad dates to the 16th Century and is currently painted a brilliant yellow.

The contrast of the yellow, along with the day’s deep blue sky, made for some beautiful pictures.

The interior of the church is quite austere, as is typical in the smaller Yucatecan churches.

This is a very simple chapel accessed by a series of steps. Inside there are a few pews and a framed picture of the Virgin of Guadalupe. The chapel dates to the 16th century.

Archaeologists working at the Mayan site of Acanceh in the Yucatan have unearthed a building that was used as an observatory by ancient priests during the Early Classic period (CE 300-600).

One of the oldest observatories found to date, the semi-circular structure is aligned with the sun and Venus, a planet of immense symbolism for the Maya.

The archaeologists discovered that when Venus reaches its maximum brilliance in the north every 584 days the building’s alignment marks the planet’s location with light and shadows on the southern wall.

It also records the moment when the sun reaches its zenith and shadows disappear for a short time.

During the spring and autumn equinoxes in March and September, the setting sun is visible through the two doorways of the observatory and the rays also hit the Pyramid of the Masks, the largest and most important building in Acanceh.

Five masks on the Pyramid façade portray Kinich Ahau, the sun god, reinforcing the temple’s symbolism.

The easiest and cheapest way is to take a second-class bus from the Merida bus station.
You can also take a “collectivo” from Mérida to Acanceh.
Or just take a taxi from Merida to Acanceh (0:30 min).

The architecture of the ruins is from the Early Classical period (250–550 CE).

Aké is bounded by two concentric walls, one defines the core of the settlement with an area of 4 sq km, while the other protects the core housing. The core is large and square surrounded by tall buildings measuring about 25 sq m.

A great sacbé (white road) of 32 km in length connects the central group of buildings of this site to the archaeological site of Izamal. This fact underscores the importance of Aké as a hub for regional interactions and trade.

Part of this sacbé was covered later by the wall that surrounds this Mayan city and its residential area, to protect it from invasions. As you walk within the area you will see a large esplanade called the Great Plaza, where the most important buildings are.

The Pilastras Structure is located in the North, and you will see a stele in the south-center of the Great Plaza.

Structure One, also called the Palace, with rows of stone columns atop a step-pyramid platform, is the site’s most impressive feature. While most Maya pyramids are built steeply with many narrow steps, Structure One is a gradual climb of huge, flat stone slabs.

This megalithic architectural style is an Early Classic diagnostic, and may also be seen at the sites of Izamal and Ek Balam.

Dating back to the 19th century, the hacienda’s sprawling grounds served as a hub of henequen production, showcasing the economic importance of the industry in the region during that era.

Henequen is a fibrous agave plant that was cultivated extensively for its durable fibers that were transformed into ropes, textiles, and various industrial products. Henequen played a pivotal role in the economy of Yucatán.

The main house of Hacienda San Lorenzo de Aké reveals its historical layers through its architecture.

With three distinct construction periods – wooden beams, iron elements, and masonry – the main house stands as a physical timeline, reflecting the changing architectural styles and materials employed over time.

This evolution provides a glimpse into the progression of construction techniques and the adaptation to new materials.

As a henequen plantation, the hacienda is a window into the social and economic dynamics of the past. The lives of workers, the management of resources, and the relationships between different classes of society are etched into its walls.

Today, Hacienda San Lorenzo de Aké stands as a living testament to history, offering visitors a chance to step back in time. Visitors can wander through its corridors, envisioning the hustle and bustle of its industrial days.

The Aké chapel

The Aké chapel stands on a Mayan pyramid and two more hills are also located on the land. In this chapel, the tradition of the Black Christ is celebrated every Holy Saturday, which is more than 137 years old.

Every Glory Saturday of Holy Week, Catholics visit the Aké chapel to take the Holy Christ to Cacalchén on a pilgrimage. More than two thousand people from the town of Cacalchén go to look for the Black Christ to honor him with prayers.

It is said that years ago the town of Cacalchén was filled with death and disease and people prayed to the Black Christ to free them from these evils. This is how this tradition was born.

Aké is located 32 km from Mérida, on Highway 80 to Tixkokob, deviation to the right in km 25.

The easiest and most cheap way to get there is by bus or by un “colectivo” from Mérida.

Balamka’anche’ in Yucatec Maya. The name translates to “the cave of the sacred jaguar throne”. According to another version, the name of the cave is related to the Mayan leaders, not the animal jaguar.

Other name variations are Balancanche, Balaamcanche, Balaancanche, Balankanche, and Balancanchyn.

Balancanché was known to the Mayans as early as the pre-classical period, 3,000 years ago. The cave was a source of water and because of this, was the object of worship to the god of rain, Chaac.

For the first time, Balancanché was visited by Edward Thompson and Alfred Tozzer in 1905. A.S. Pearse and a team of biologists explored the cave in 1932 and 1936. E. Wyllys Andrews IV also explored the cave in the 1930s.

Edwin Shook and R.E. Smith explored the cave in 1954 and dug several trenches to recover potsherds and other artifacts. Shook determined that the cave had been inhabited over a long period, at least from the Preclassic to the post-conquest era.

On 15 September 1959, José Humberto Gómez, a local guide, discovered a false wall in the cave. Behind it was a Maya sanctuary consisting of the “Altar of the Jaguar” and the “Altar of Pristine Waters”.

José Humberto Gómez found an extended network of caves with significant quantities of undisturbed archaeological remains, including pottery and stone-carved censers, stone implements, and jewelry.

The cave ended at a small lake.

The sanctuary has been studied and described by Ramon Pavon Abreu. It turned out that the sanctuary was built in honor of the god Tlaloc, and walled in about 842 AD during the Classic Maya collapse.

INAH converted the cave into an underground museum, and the all objects after being cataloged were returned to their original places so visitors could see them in situ, almost the same way they were left there.

• From Valladolid by bus, “colectivo” or local agency tour.
• Getting there in a taxi from Valladolid will take around 0:45 min.

Celestun has a tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons.

The weather is typically warm and humid throughout the year.

Dry Season (November to April)

This is the best time to visit Celestun.

During these months, the weather is dry and comfortable, with temperatures averaging around 27-29°C. This period offers ideal conditions for outdoor activities and exploring the natural beauty of the area.

Wet Season (May to October)

This period sees increased rainfall, with occasional tropical storms.

Humidity levels rise, and temperatures hover around 29-32°C. While the wet season can be less comfortable for outdoor activities, it contributes to the lush greenery of the mangrove forests.

The best time to visit Celestun

The best time to visit Celestun is during the dry season, from November to April.

This is when you can enjoy sunny days, pleasant temperatures, and clear skies. It’s an excellent time for birdwatching, exploring the flamingo habitats, and taking boat tours through the estuaries.

The region was inhabited by indigenous Mayan people long before the arrival of the Spanish.

In the early 16th century, Spanish conquistadors began arriving in Yucatan. By the 17th century, the area of Celestun had become an established coastal settlement and was used as a port for trade and commerce.

In 1979 the Celestun Biosphere Reserve was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This status was granted due to the area’s rich biodiversity, including the significant population of American flamingos.

The town itself is a tranquil small fishing village, with traditional stilted houses along the coast. Celestún has a 19th-century lighthouse (as well as a more modern one) and an abandoned historic Hacienda.

One of the busiest times for tourism is Semana Santa when local Maya villagers from around the region visit Celestun.

Local folk-catholic traditions are abundant during the Holy Week when the town’s patron saint is floated out to sea surrounded by candles, and visited by the patron saint of nearby Kinchil.

As the town of Celestun is the seat of the municipality (municipio) of Celestun, it attracts various carnivals, dances, and musicians to its town square on a regular basis.

Surrounding the town is the 600 sq km National Park of Mexican Flamingo (Ria Celestun Biosphere Reserve), a wetland reserve that is the winter home to vast flocks of flamingos, as well as many herons and other bird species.

This location is set within the Petenes mangrove ecoregion.

In addition, more than 200 species of birds pass through on migration or live there. Celestun’s ecosystem is unique because of a combination of fresh water from the estuary and saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico.

Ria Celestun Biosphere Reserve also has two types of pelicans – large white Canadian and smaller gray Mexican ones. Ria Celestun Biosphere Reserve is also known as a hatching ground for endangered sea turtles.

All buses run to Celestun just via Merida.

• Buses from Merida (2:00 hours) run each 1 hour daily.
• By taxi from Merida (1:25 hours).

From Campeche City

• By taxi directly (2:50 hours).

The term Chabihau in Mayan language means where the anteater (Chab) opens path (haw). It is a patronymic and toponymic.

There are no recorded data on the foundation of the present population of Chabihau, although it is known that there was Mayan occupation before the conquest of Yucatan in the region, which belonged to the cacicazgo or jurisdiction of Ah Kin Chel.

Towards 1825 the town belonged to the Party of the Coast, whose head was Izamal. Later Chabihau was part of the jurisdiction of Dzilam González. Finally, from 1921 the port is part of the municipality of Yobaín.

Desde Mérida by local bus to Cansahcab (0:55) 3 times a day.
Then by taxi (0:25 min) $4-$6.

Desde Mérida by local bus to Motul (0:45) each hour during all the day.
Then by taxi (0:40 min) $7-$9.

Desde Mérida by local bus to Cansahcab (0:55) 3 times a day.
Then by taxi (0:25 min) $4-$6.

Desde Mérida in taxi (1:20 min) $14-$17.

You can dial 078 from any phone, where you can find free information about tourist attractions, airports, travel agencies, car rental companies, embassies and consulates, fairs and exhibitions, hotels, hospitals, financial services, migratory and other issues.

Or dial the toll-free (in Mexico) number 01-800-006-8839.

You can also request information to the email correspondencia@sectur.gob.mx

MORE EMERGENCY NUMBERS:

General Information: 040 (not free)

National Emergency Service: 911

Radio Patrols: 066
Police (Emergency): 060
Civil Protection: +52(55)5683-2222
Anonymous Complaint: 089

Setravi (Transport Mobility): +52(55)5209-9913
Road Emergency: 074

Cruz Roja: 065 o +52(55)5557-5757
Firefighters: 068 o +52(55)5768-3700

The site was discovered in the 19th century by the Austrian explorer Teobert Maler, and was excavated in detail during the 1970s.

The city center covers one square kilometer. There are four main districts of the city: Chacmultun, Cabalpak, Xetpol and the Central district. These groups of buildings were built on hills or artificial terraces to make them seem more imposing. It is thought that the city had trade links with many other contemporary Maya sites in the area, like Edzna, Oxkintok, Uxmal and Kabah.

Some buildings contain preserved Maya murals, which are quite rare.

The city reached its peak during the Late Classic period, during the 10th century. The buildings at Chacmultun are designed in the Puuc architectural style, with elaborate friezes decorating the buildings. The site was continuously occupied until the 15th century.

The best way to get to Chacmultun is from Merida.

From Merida by bus to Akil $3-$5 (1:20 hour), each 30 min.
And then in taxi $3-$$ (0:17 min).

Taxi from Merida to Chacmultun $21-$26.

You can dial 078 from any phone, where you can find free information about tourist attractions, airports, travel agencies, car rental companies, embassies and consulates, fairs and exhibitions, hotels, hospitals, financial services, migratory and other issues.

Or dial the toll-free (in Mexico) number 01-800-006-8839.

You can also request information to the email correspondencia@sectur.gob.mx

MORE EMERGENCY NUMBERS:

General Information: 040 (not free)

National Emergency Service: 911

Radio Patrols: 066
Police (Emergency): 060
Civil Protection: +52(55)5683-2222
Anonymous Complaint: 089

Setravi (Transport Mobility): +52(55)5209-9913
Road Emergency: 074

Cruz Roja: 065 o +52(55)5557-5757
Firefighters: 068 o +52(55)5768-3700

Chichen Itza is located in the northern Yucatán.

The northern Yucatán Peninsula is arid, and the rivers in the interior all run underground. There are two large, natural sinkholes, called cenotes, that could have provided plentiful water year-round at Chichen.

One of the cenotes, the “Cenote Sagrado” (“Sacred Cenote”), is the most famous. Pre-Columbian Maya sacrificed objects and human beings into this cenote as a form of worship to the Maya rain god Chaac.

Edward Herbert Thompson dredged the Cenote Sagrado from 1904 to 1910 and recovered artifacts of gold, jade, pottery, and incense, as well as human remains. Studies have confirmed that this is a human sacrifice.

The Mayan name of the place “Chi’ch’èen Ìitsha” in Yucatec maya means “at the mouth of the well of the Itza”. This derives from the word chi’ (“mouth” or “edge”) and the word ch’en or ch’e’en (“well”).

Itzá is the name of an ethnic-lineage group that gained political and economic dominance of the northern peninsula. One possible translation for Itza is “enchanter (or enchantment) of the water” from its (“sorcerer”) and ha (“water”).

The name is spelled Chichén Itzá in Spanish, and the accents are sometimes maintained in other languages to show that both parts of the name are stressed on their final syllable.

Other references prefer the Maya orthography, Chichen Itza. This form preserves the phonemic distinction between ch’ and ch, since the base word ch’e’en (which, however, is not stressed in Maya) begins with a postalveolar ejective affricate consonant.

The word “Itza'” has a high tone on the “a” followed by a glottal stop (indicated by the apostrophe).

Evidence in the Chilam Balam books indicates another, earlier name for this city prior to the arrival of the Itza hegemony in northern Yucatán. While most sources agree the first word means seven, there is considerable debate as to the correct translation of the rest.

This earlier name is difficult to define because of the absence of a single standard of orthography, but it is represented variously as Uuc Yabnal (“Seven Great House”), Uuc Hab Nal (“Seven Bushy Places”), Uucyabnal (“Seven Great Rulers”) or Uc Abnal (“Seven Lines of Abnal”).

This name, dating to the Late Classic Period, is recorded both in the book of Chilam Balam de Chumayel and in hieroglyphic texts in the ruins.

Chichen Itza was a major focal point in the Northern Maya Lowlands from the Late Classic (c. AD 600–900) through the Terminal Classic (c. AD 800–900) and into the early portion of the Postclassic period (c. AD 900–1200).

The layout of the Chichen Itza site core was developed during its earlier phase of occupation, between 750 and 900 AD. Its final layout was developed after 900 AD, and the 10th century saw the rise of the city as a regional capital controlling the area from central Yucatán to the north coast, with its power extending down the east and west coasts of the peninsula. The earliest hieroglyphic date discovered at Chichen Itza is equivalent to 832 AD, while the last known date was recorded in the Osario temple in 998.

Establishment

The Late Classic city was centered upon the area to the southwest of the Xtoloc cenote, with the main architecture represented by the substructures now underlying the Las Monjas and Observatorio and the basal platform upon which they were built.

Ascendancy

Chichen Itza rose to regional prominence towards the end of the Early Classic period (roughly 600 AD). It was, however, towards the end of the Late Classic and into the early part of the Terminal Classic that the site became a major regional capital, centralizing and dominating political, sociocultural, economic, and ideological life in the northern Maya lowlands. The ascension of Chichen Itza roughly correlates with the decline and fragmentation of the major centers of the southern Maya lowlands.

As Chichen Itza rose to prominence, the cities of Yaxuna (to the south) and Coba (to the east) were suffering decline.

These two cities had been mutual allies, with Yaxuna dependent upon Coba. At some point in the 10th century, Coba lost a significant portion of its territory, isolating Yaxuna, and Chichen Itza may have directly contributed to the collapse of both cities.

Decline

According to some colonial Mayan sources (e.g., the Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel), Hunac Ceel, ruler of Mayapan, conquered Chichen Itza in the 13th century. Hunac Ceel supposedly prophesied his own rise to power.

According to custom at the time, individuals thrown into the Cenote Sagrado were believed to have the power of prophecy if they survived. During one such ceremony, the chronicles state, there were no survivors, so Hunac Ceel leaped into the Cenote Sagrado, and when removed, prophesied his own ascension.

While there is some archaeological evidence that indicates Chichén Itzá was at one time looted and sacked, there appears to be greater evidence that it could not have been by Mayapan, at least not when Chichén Itzá was an active urban center.

Archaeological data now indicates that Chichen Itza declined as a regional center by 1250, before the rise of Mayapan. Ongoing research at the site of Mayapan may help resolve this chronological conundrum.

After Chichén Itzá elite activities ceased, the city may not have been abandoned. When the Spanish arrived, they found a thriving local population, although it is not clear from Spanish sources if the Maya were living in Chichen Itza or nearby.

The relatively high population density in the region was a factor in the conquistadors’ decision to locate a capital there. According to post-Conquest sources, both Spanish and Maya, the Cenote Sagrado remained a place of pilgrimage.

Spanish conquest

In 1526 Spanish Conquistador Francisco de Montejo (a veteran of the Grijalva and Cortés expeditions) successfully petitioned the King of Spain for a charter to conquer Yucatán. His first campaign in 1527, which covered much of the Yucatán Peninsula, decimated his forces but ended with the establishment of a small fort at Xaman Ha’, south of what is today Cancún.

Montejo returned to Yucatán in 1531 with reinforcements and established his main base at Campeche on the west coast. He sent his son, Francisco Montejo The Younger, in late 1532 to conquer the interior of the Yucatán Peninsula from the north.

The objective from the beginning was to go to Chichén Itzá and establish a capital.

Montejo the Younger eventually arrived at Chichen Itza, which he renamed Ciudad Real. At first, he encountered no resistance and set about dividing the lands around the city and awarding them to his soldiers.

The Maya became more hostile over time, and eventually, they laid siege to the Spanish, cutting off their supply line to the coast, and forcing them to barricade themselves among the ruins of the ancient city. Months passed, but no reinforcements arrived.

Montejo the Younger attempted an all-out assault against the Maya and lost 150 of his remaining troops. He was forced to abandon Chichén Itzá in 1534 under cover of darkness.

By 1535, all Spanish had been driven from the Yucatán Peninsula.

Montejo eventually returned to Yucatán and, by recruiting Maya from Campeche and Champoton, built a large Indio-Spanish army and conquered the peninsula. The Spanish crown later issued a land grant that included Chichen Itza and by 1588 it was a working cattle ranch.

Modern history

Chichen Itza entered the popular imagination in 1843 with the book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan by John Lloyd Stephens. The book recounted Stephens’ visit to Yucatán and his tour of Maya cities, including Chichén Itzá.

The book prompted other explorations of the city. In 1860, Désiré Charnay surveyed Chichén Itzá and took numerous photographs that he published in Cités et ruins américaines (1863).

In 1875, Augustus Le Plongeon and his wife Alice Dixon Le Plongeon visited Chichén and excavated a statue of a figure on its back, knees drawn up, upper torso raised on its elbows with a plate on its stomach.

Augustus Le Plongeon called it “Chaacmol” (later renamed “Chac Mool”).

Teobert Maler and Alfred Maudslay explored Chichén in the 1880s and both spent several weeks at the site and took extensive photographs. Maudslay published the first long-form description of Chichen Itza in his book, Biologia Centrali-Americana.

In 1894 the United States Consul to Yucatán, Edward Herbert Thompson, purchased the Hacienda Chichén, which included the ruins of Chichen Itza. For 30 years, Thompson explored the ancient city.

His discoveries included the earliest dated carving upon a lintel in the Temple of the Initial Series and the excavation of several graves in the Osario (High Priest’s Temple).

Thompson is most famous for dredging the Cenote Sagrado (Sacred Cenote) from 1904 to 1910, where he recovered artifacts of gold, copper, and carved jade, as well as the first-ever examples of what were believed to be pre-Columbian Maya cloth and wooden weapons.

Thompson shipped the bulk of the artifacts to the Peabody Museum at Harvard University.

In 1913, the Carnegie Institution accepted the proposal of archaeologist Sylvanus G. Morley and committed to conducting long-term archaeological research at Chichen Itza. The Mexican Revolution and the following government instability, as well as World War I, delayed the project by a decade.

In 1923, the Mexican government awarded the Carnegie Institution a 10-year permit (later extended another 10 years) to allow U.S. archaeologists to conduct extensive excavation and restoration of Chichen Itza.

Carnegie researchers excavated and restored the Temple of Warriors and the Caracol, among other major buildings. At the same time, the Mexican government excavated and restored El Castillo and the Great Ball Court.

In 1926, the Mexican government charged Edward Thompson with theft, claiming he stole the artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado and smuggled them out of the country. The government seized the Hacienda Chichén.

Thompson, who was in the United States at the time, never returned to Yucatán. He wrote about his research and investigations of the Maya culture in a book People of the Serpent published in 1932. He died in New Jersey in 1935.

In 1944 the Mexican Supreme Court ruled that Thompson had broken no laws and returned Chichen Itza to his heirs. The Thompsons sold the hacienda to tourism pioneer Fernando Barbachano Peon.

There have been two later expeditions to recover artifacts from the Cenote Sagrado, in 1961 and 1967.

The first was sponsored by National Geographic, and the second by private interests. Both projects were supervised by Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH).

INAH has conducted an ongoing effort to excavate and restore other monuments in the archaeological zone, including the Osario, Akab D’zib, and several buildings in Chichén Viejo (Old Chichen).

In 2009, to investigate construction that predated El Castillo, Yucatec archaeologists began excavations adjacent to El Castillo under the direction of Rafael (Rach) Cobos.

Political organization

Several archaeologists in the late 1980s suggested that, unlike previous Maya polities of the Early Classic, Chichen Itza may not have been governed by an individual ruler or a single dynastic lineage.

Instead, the city’s political organization could have been structured by a “multepal” system, which is characterized as rulership through a council composed of members of elite ruling lineages.

This theory was popular in the 1990s, but in recent years, the research that supported the concept of the “multepal” system has been called into question, if not discredited. The current belief trend in Maya scholarship is toward the more traditional model of the Maya kingdoms of the Classic Period southern lowlands in Mexico.

Economy

Chichen Itza was a major economic power in the northern Maya lowlands during its apogee.

Participating in the water-borne circum-peninsular trade route through its port site of Isla Cerritos on the north coast, Chichen Itza was able to obtain locally unavailable resources from distant areas such as obsidian from central Mexico and gold from southern Central America.

Between AD 900 and 1050 Chichen Itza expanded to become a powerful regional capital controlling north and central Yucatán. It established Isla Cerritos as a trading port.

Chichen Itza was one of the largest Maya cities, with the relatively densely clustered architecture of the site core covering an area of at least 5 sq km. Smaller-scale residential architecture extends for an unknown distance beyond this.

The city was built upon broken terrain, which was artificially leveled in order to build the major architectural groups, with the greatest effort being expended in the leveling of the areas for the Castillo pyramid and the Las Monjas, Osario, and Main Southwest groups.

The site contains many fine stone buildings in various states of preservation, and many have been restored. The buildings were connected by a dense network of paved causeways, called sacbeob.

Archaeologists have identified over 80 sacbeob crisscrossing the site and extending in all directions from the city. Many of these stone buildings were originally painted in red, green, blue, and purple colors.

Pigments were chosen according to what was most easily available in the area.

The site must be imagined as a colorful one, not like it is today. Just like gothic cathedrals in Europe, colors provided a greater sense of completeness and contributed greatly to the symbolic impact of the buildings.

The architecture encompasses a number of styles, including the Puuc and Chenes styles of the northern Yucatán Peninsula.

The buildings of Chichen Itza are grouped in a series of architectonic sets, and each set was at one time separated from the other by a series of low walls. The three best-known of these complexes are the Great North Platform, which includes the monuments of El Castillo, the Temple of Warriors, and the Great Ball Court; The Osario Group, which includes the pyramid of the same name as well as the Temple of Xtoloc; and the Central Group, which includes the Caracol, Las Monjas, and Akab Dzib.

South of Las Monjas, in an area known as Chichén Viejo (Old Chichén) and only open to archaeologists, are several other complexes, such as the Group of the Initial Series, Group of the Lintels, and Group of the Old Castle.

Architectural styles

The Puuc-style architecture is concentrated in the Old Chichen area, and also the earlier structures in the Nunnery Group (including the Las Monjas, Annex, and La Iglesia buildings); it is also represented in the Akab Dzib structure.

The Puuc-style building features the usual mosaic-decorated upper façades characteristic of the style but differs from the architecture of the Puuc heartland in their block masonry walls, as opposed to the fine veneers of the Puuc region proper.

At least one structure in the Las Monjas Group features an ornate façade and masked doorway that are typical examples of Chenes-style architecture, a style centered upon a region in the north of Campeche state, lying between the Puuc and Río Bec regions.

Those structures with sculpted hieroglyphic script are concentrated in certain areas of the site, with the most important being the Las Monjas group.

El Castillo

Dominating the North Platform of Chichen Itza is the Temple of Kukulkan (a Maya feathered serpent deity similar to the Aztec Quetzalcoatl), usually referred to as El Castillo (“the castle”). This step pyramid stands about 30 m high and consists of a series of nine square terraces, each approximately 2.57 m high, with a 6 m high temple upon the summit.

The sides of the pyramid are approximately 55.3 m at the base and rise at an angle of 53°, although that varies slightly for each side. The four faces of the pyramid have protruding stairways that rise at an angle of 45°.

The talud walls of each terrace slant at an angle of between 72° and 74°.

At the base of the balustrades of the northeastern staircase are carved heads of a serpent.

Mesoamerican cultures periodically superimposed larger structures over older ones, and El Castillo is one such example.

In the mid-1930s, the Mexican government sponsored an excavation of El Castillo. After several false starts, they discovered a staircase under the north side of the pyramid. By digging from the top, they found another temple buried below the current one.

Inside the temple chamber was a Chac Mool statue and a throne in the shape of a Jaguar, painted red and with spots made of inlaid jade.

The Mexican government excavated a tunnel from the base of the north staircase, up the earlier pyramid’s stairway to the hidden temple, and opened it to tourists. In 2006, INAH closed the throne room to the public.

In 1566, the pyramid was described by Friar Diego de Landa in the manuscript known as Yucatán at the Time of the Spanish Encounter (Relación de las cosas de Yucatán).

Almost three centuries later, John Lloyd Stephens described with even more detail the architecture of the pyramid in his book Incidents of Travel in Yucatán (Incidentes del viaje Yucatán), published in 1843.

At that time, the archaeological site of Chichén Itzá was located on an estate, also called Chichén Itzá, owned by Juan Sosa. Frederick Catherwood illustrated the book with lithographs depicting the pyramid covered in abundant vegetation on all sides.

There are some photographs taken at the beginning of the 20th century that also show the pyramid partially covered by said vegetation.

In 1924, the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C. requested permission from the Mexican government to carry out explorations and restoration efforts in and around the area of Chichen Itza.

In 1927, with the assistance of Mexican archaeologists, they started the task.

In April 1931, looking to confirm the hypothesis that the structure of the pyramid of Kukulkan was built on top of a much older pyramid, the work of excavation and exploration began in spite of generalized beliefs contrary to that hypothesis.

On June 7, 1932, a box with coral, obsidian, and turquoise-encrusted objects was found alongside human remains, which are exhibited in the National Anthropology Museum in Mexico City.

After extensive work, in April 1935, a Chac Mool statue, with its nails, teeth, and eyes inlaid with mother of pearl was found inside the pyramid.

The room where the discovery was made was nicknamed the Hall of Offerings or the North Chamber. After more than a year of excavation, in August 1936, a second room was found, only meters away from the first.

Inside this room, nicknamed the chamber of sacrifices, archaeologists found two parallel rows of human bone set into the back wall, as well as a red jaguar statue with 74 jade inlays for spots, jade crescents for eyes, and white painted flint for teeth and fangs.

On its back was found a turquoise disc apparently used for burning incense.

Both figures were found facing north-northeast.

Researchers concluded that there must be an inner pyramid approximately 33 m wide, shaped similarly to the outer pyramid, with nine steps and a height of 17 m up to the base of the temple where the Chac Mool and the jaguar were found.

It is estimated that this construction dates to the eleventh century CE.

After all of the work was completed, an entryway was cut into the balustrade of the northeastern exterior staircase to provide access to tourists. The older, inner pyramid is referred to as the “substructure”.

Closed for public climbing

Climbing El Castillo was stopped in 2006, after a 91-year-old woman slipped on her way back, fell fell down the remaining steps of the pyramid. Medical assistance was immediate.

The ambulance, permanently stationed at the foot of El Castillo, was mobilized.

Its crew administered aid at the scene and then rushed her to the nearby Regional de Valladolid Hospital. Unfortunately, the lady’s head and neck injuries were too severe. Despite the best efforts of the hospital personnel there, she died four hours later.

For the owners of Chichén Itzá, this was the last straw.

They had bowed to public pressure to keep the structures accessible to climbers for too long.

An army of specialists had scrubbed or otherwise erased the graffiti; repairs had been made to eroded steps; guide ropes had been fitted; and the ambulance installed. But there were now simply too many people wishing to climb the pyramids.

What had occurred with the old lady had been an accident waiting to happen, and now it had actually happened. The decision was made, for the safety of visitors and the preservation of the structures, to prohibit public climbing on the pyramids.

At the same time, INAH closed the public access to the interior throne room.

Spring and Autumn equinoxes

On the Spring and Autumn equinoxes, in the late afternoon, the northwest corner of the pyramid casts a series of triangular shadows against the western balustrade on the north side that evokes the appearance of a serpent wriggling down the staircase, which some scholars have suggested is a representation of the feathered-serpent god Kukulkan.

Great Ball Court

Archaeologists have identified thirteen ballcourts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame in Chichen Itza, but the Great Ball Court about 150 m to the north-west of the Castillo is by far the most impressive.

It is the largest and best-preserved ball court in ancient Mesoamerica. It measures 168 by 70 m.

The parallel platforms flanking the main playing area are each 95 m long. The walls of these platforms stand 8 m high; set high up in the center of each of these walls are rings carved with intertwined feathered serpents.

At the base of the high interior walls are slanted benches with sculpted panels of teams of ball players. In one panel, one of the players has been decapitated; the wound emits streams of blood in the form of wriggling snakes.

At one end of the Great Ball Court is the North Temple, also known as the Temple of the Bearded Man (Templo del Hombre Barbado).

This small masonry building has detailed bas-relief carving on the inner walls, including a center figure that has carving under his chin that resembles facial hair. At the south end is another, much bigger temple, but in ruins.

Built into the east wall are the Temples of the Jaguar.

The Upper Temple of the Jaguar overlooks the ball court and has an entrance guarded by two, large columns carved in the familiar feathered serpent motif. Inside there is a large mural, much destroyed, which depicts a battle scene.

In the entrance to the Lower Temple of the Jaguar, which opens behind the ball court, is another Jaguar throne, similar to the one in the inner temple of El Castillo, except that it is well-worn and missing paint or other decoration.

The outer columns and the walls inside the temple are covered with elaborate bas-relief carvings.

Additional structures

The Tzompantli, or Skull Platform (Plataforma de los Cráneos), shows the clear cultural influence of the central Mexican Plateau. Unlike the tzompantli of the highlands, however, the skulls were impaled vertically rather than horizontally as at Tenochtitlan.

The Platform of the Eagles and the Jaguars (Plataforma de Águilas y Jaguares) is immediately to the east of the Great Ballcourt. It is built in a combination of Maya and Toltec styles, with a staircase ascending each of its four sides.

The sides are decorated with panels depicting eagles and jaguars consuming human hearts.

This Platform of Venus is dedicated to the planet Venus. In its interior archaeologists discovered a collection of large cones carved out of stone, the purpose of which is unknown. This platform is located north of El Castillo, between it and the Cenote Sagrado.

The Temple of the Tables is the northernmost of a series of buildings to the east of El Castillo. Its name comes from a series of altars at the top of the structure that are supported by small carved figures of men with upraised arms, called “atlantes.”

The Steam Bath is a unique building with three parts: a waiting gallery, a water bath, and a steam chamber that is operated by means of heated stones.

Sacbe Number One is a causeway that leads to the Cenote Sagrado, which is the largest and most elaborate at Chichen Itza.

This “white road” is 270 m long with an average width of 9 m. It begins at a low wall a few meters from the Platform of Venus. According to archaeologists there once was an extensive building with columns at the beginning of the road.

Sacred Cenote

The Yucatán Peninsula is a limestone plain, with no rivers or streams. The region is pockmarked with natural sinkholes, called cenotes, which expose the water table to the surface.

One of the most impressive of these is the Cenote Sagrado, which is 60 m in diameter and surrounded by sheer cliffs that drop to the water table some 27 m below.

The Cenote Sagrado was a place of pilgrimage for ancient Maya people who, according to ethnohistoric sources, would conduct sacrifices during times of drought.

Archaeological investigations support this as thousands of objects have been removed from the bottom of the cenote, including material such as gold, carved jade, copal, pottery, flint, obsidian, shell, wood, rubber, cloth, as well as skeletons of children and men.

Temple of the Warriors

The Temple of the Warriors complex consists of a large stepped pyramid fronted and flanked by rows of carved columns depicting warriors. This complex is analogous to Temple B at the Toltec capital of Tula and indicates some form of cultural contact between the two regions.

The one at Chichen Itza, however, was constructed on a larger scale. At the top of the stairway on the pyramid’s summit (and leading towards the entrance of the pyramid’s temple) is a Chac Mool.

This temple encases or entombs a former structure called The Temple of the Chac Mool. The archeological expedition and restoration of this building were done by the Carnegie Institution of Washington from 1925 to 1928. A key member of this restoration was Earl H. Morris who published the work from this expedition in two volumes entitled Temple of the Warriors.

Group of a Thousand Columns

Along the south wall of the Temple of Warriors are a series of what are today exposed columns, although when the city was inhabited these would have supported an extensive roof system.

The columns are in three distinct sections: A west group, that extends the lines of the front of the Temple of Warriors. A north group runs along the south wall of the Temple of Warriors and contains pillars with carvings of soldiers in bas-relief;

A northeast group, which apparently formed a small temple at the southeast corner of the Temple of Warriors, contains a rectangular decorated with carvings of people or gods, as well as animals and serpents.

The northeast column temple also covers a small marvel of engineering, a channel that funnels all the rainwater from the complex some 40 m away to a rejollada, a former cenote.

To the south of the Group of a Thousand Columns is a group of three, smaller, interconnected buildings. The Temple of the Carved Columns is a small elegant building that consists of a front gallery with an inner corridor that leads to an altar with a Chac Mool.

There are also numerous columns with rich, bas-relief carvings of some 40 personages.

A section of the upper façade with a motif of x’s and o’s is displayed in front of the structure. The Temple of the Small Tables is an unrestored mound. The Thompson’s Temple (referred to in some sources as Palace of Ahau Balam Kauil ), is a small building with two levels that has friezes depicting Jaguars (balam in Maya) as well as glyphs of the Maya god Kahuil.

El Mercado

This square structure anchors the southern end of the Temple of Warriors complex. It is so named for the shelf of stone that surrounds a large gallery and patio that early explorers theorized was used to display wares as in a marketplace.

Today, archaeologists believe that its purpose is more ceremonial than commercial.

Osario Group

South of the North Group is a smaller platform that has many important structures, several of which appear to be oriented toward the second-largest cenote at Chichen Itza, Xtoloc.

The Osario itself, like El Castillo, is a step-pyramid temple dominating its platform, only on a smaller scale. Like its larger neighbor, it has four sides with staircases on each side.

There is a temple on top, but unlike El Castillo, at the center is an opening into the pyramid which leads to a natural cave 12 m below. Edward H. Thompson excavated this cave in the late 19th century, and because he found several skeletons and artifacts such as jade beads, he named the structure The High Priests’ Temple.

Archaeologists today believe neither that the structure was a tomb nor that the personages buried in it were priests.

The Temple of Xtoloc is a recently restored temple outside the Osario Platform.

It overlooks the other large cenote at Chichen Itza, named after the Maya word for iguana, “Xtoloc.” The temple contains a series of pilasters carved with images of people, as well as representations of plants, birds, and mythological scenes.

Between the Xtoloc temple and the Osario are several aligned structures: The Platform of Venus (which is similar in design to the structure of the same name next to El Castillo), the Platform of the Tombs, and a small, round structure that is unnamed.

These three structures were constructed in a row extending from the Osario. Beyond them, the Osario platform terminates in a wall, which contains an opening to a sacbe that runs several hundred feet to the Xtoloc temple.

South of the Osario, at the boundary of the platform, there are two small buildings that archaeologists believe were residences for important personages. These have been named the House of the Metates and the House of the Mestizas.

Casa Colorada Group

South of the Osario Group is another small platform that has several structures that are among the oldest in the Chichen Itza archaeological zone.

The Casa Colorada (Spanish for “Red House”) is one of the best-preserved buildings at Chichen Itza. Its Maya name is Chichanchob, which according to INAH may mean “small holes”.

In one chamber there are extensive carved hieroglyphs that mention rulers of Chichen Itza and possibly of the nearby city of Ek Balam and contain a Maya date inscribed which correlates to 869 AD, one of the oldest such dates found in all of Chichen Itza.

In 2009, INAH restored a small ball court that adjoined the back wall of the Casa Colorada.

While the Casa Colorada is in a good state of preservation, other buildings in the group, with one exception, are decrepit mounds.

One building is half-standing, named La Casa del Venado (House of the Deer). This building’s name has been long used by the local Maya, and some authors mention that it was named after a deer painting over stucco that doesn’t exist anymore.

Central Group

Las Monjas is one of the more notable structures at Chichen Itza. It is a complex of Terminal Classic buildings constructed in the Puuc architectural style. The Spanish named this complex Las Monjas (“The Nuns” or “The Nunnery”) but it was actually a governmental palace. Just to the east is a small temple (known as the La Iglesia, “The Church”) decorated with elaborate masks.

The Las Monjas group is distinguished by its concentration of hieroglyphic texts dating to the Late to Terminal Classic. These texts frequently mention a ruler by the name of Kakupakal.

El Caracol (“The Snail”) is located to the north of Las Monjas. It is a round building on a large square platform. It gets its name from the stone spiral staircase inside. The structure, with its unusual placement on the platform and its round shape (the others are rectangular, in keeping with Maya practice), is theorized to have been a proto-observatory with doors and windows aligned to astronomical events, specifically around the path of Venus as it traverses the heavens.

Akab Dzib is located to the east of the Caracol. The name means, in Yucatec Mayan, “Dark Writing”; “dark” in the sense of “mysterious”. An earlier name of the building, according to a translation of glyphs in the Casa Colorada, is Wa(k)wak Puh Ak Na, “the flat house with the excessive number of chambers,” and it was the home of the administrator of Chichén Itzá, kokom Yahawal Cho’ K’ak’.

INAH completed a restoration of the building in 2007. It is relatively short, only 6 m high, and is 50 m in length and 15 m wide. The long, western-facing façade has seven doorways. The eastern façade has only four doorways, broken by a large staircase that leads to the roof.

This apparently was the front of the structure and looks out over what is today a steep, dry, cenote.

The southern end of the building has one entrance.

The door opens into a small chamber and on the opposite wall is another doorway, above which on the lintel are intricately carved glyphs – the “mysterious” or “obscure” writing that gives the building its name today.

Under the lintel in the doorjamb is another carved panel of a seated figure surrounded by more glyphs. Inside one of the chambers, near the ceiling, is a painted handprint.

Old Chichen

Old Chichen (or Chichén Viejo in Spanish) is the name given to a group of structures to the south of the central site, where most of the Puuc-style architecture of the city is concentrated. It includes the Initial Series Group, the Phallic Temple, the Platform of the Great Turtle, the Temple of the Owls, and the Temple of the Monkeys.

Other structures

Chichen Itza also has a variety of other structures densely packed in the ceremonial center of about 5 sq km and several outlying subsidiary sites.

Cenote Sagrado (“Sacred Well”), alternatively known as the “Well of Sacrifice”, refers to a noted cenote at the pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site of Chichen Itza.

It is located to the north of Chichen Itza’s civic precinct, to which it is connected by a 300-metre sacbe, or raised and paved pathway.

According to post-Conquest sources (Maya and Spanish), pre-Columbian Maya sacrificed objects and human beings into the cenote as a form of worship to the Maya rain god Chaac.

Edward Herbert Thompson dredged the Cenote Sagrado from 1904 to 1910 and recovered artifacts of gold, jade, pottery, and incense, as well as human remains. A study of human remains taken from the Cenote Sagrado found that they had wounds consistent with human sacrifice.

Description and History

The northwestern Yucatán Peninsula is a limestone plain, with no rivers streams, lakes, or ponds.

The region is pockmarked with natural sinkholes, called cenotes, which expose the water table to the surface. One of the most impressive of these is the Sacred Cenote, which is 60 m in diameter and surrounded by sheer cliffs that drop to the water table some 27 m below.

According to ethnohistoric sources, the Sacred Cenote was a place of pilgrimage for ancient Maya people who would conduct sacrifices in it. As Friar Diego de Landa observed in 1566 after visiting Chichen Itza:

“Into this well, they have had, and then had, the custom of throwing men alive as a sacrifice to the gods, in times of drought, and they believed that they did not die though they never saw them again.

They also threw into it a great many other things, like precious stones and things that they prized. And so, if this country had possessed gold, it would be this well that would have the great part of it”.

Archaeological explorations of the cenote

Most of the major findings in the cenote were made under the supervision of Edward Herbert Thompson, who began dredging in 1904. Much of what is known about the dredging process is derived from Thompson’s personal notes.

Thompson received money from Stephen Salisbury III to help him buy the Chichén Itzá excavation site and explore the cenote. Much of Thompson’s findings and research can be found at the Peabody Museum at Harvard University.

A bucket attached to a pulley system was used to dredge the cenote.

Much of the beginning work consisted of clearing debris and fallen trees on the top of the water. Leon Cole, a colleague of Thompson, once recorded in his journal, “they made ten hauls in the morning and six or eight in the afternoon.”

People would search through the buckets of water looking for artifacts and categorizing them accordingly. Unfortunately, there were several reports of stolen artifacts that could never be found.

Thompson decided to take a break from dredging after Salisbury died. A host of problems, including the Mexican Revolution, and financial issues began to hinder the work effort and damage the morale of the workers.

Thompson’s house in Mexico was also burned down, and one of the chests in which he kept his notes and data was destroyed in the fire. By 1923, Thompson was officially done working on the cenote.

In 1909, Thompson decided to dive in the cenote to explore the floors, assisted by two Greek divers from the Bahamas. He reported limited visibility due to the murky water, and many shifting rocks and trees made the dive hazardous.

Thompson found a layer about 5 m thick of blue pigment that had settled on the ground of the cenote. He described the bottom as, “full of long narrow cracks, radiating from centers as if the glass bottom of a dish had been broken by a pointed instrument.

We found down in the cracks and holes a grayish mud in which were embedded the heavier gold objects, jades, and copper bells in numbers.” He later proudly proclaimed, “I have at last personally trod the bottom of the Cenote.”

In 1961, William Folan, a field director for the Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia (INAH), helped launch another expedition into the cenote. Some of their notable discoveries included an inscribed, gold-sheathed bone, a large chert knife with a gold-sheathed wooden handle, and wooden ear flares with jade and turquoise mosaic.

In 1967-1968, Norman Scott and Román Piña Chán led another expedition. They tried two new methods that many people had suggested for a long time: emptying the water out of the cenote and clarifying the water. Both of these methods were only partially successful.

Only about 4 m of water could be removed, and the water was only clarified for a short amount of time.

Objects found in the Sacred Cenote

Archaeological investigations support this as thousands of objects have been removed from the bottom of the cenote, including artifacts made from gold, jadeite, copal, pottery, flint, obsidian, shell, wood, rubber, cloth, as well as human skeletons.

Many perishable objects were preserved by the cenote. Wooden objects that normally would have rotted were preserved in the water.

A great variety of wooden objects have been found including weapons, scepters, idols, tools, and jewelry. Jade was the largest category of objects found, followed by textiles.

The presence of jade, gold, and copper in the cenote offers proof of the importance of Chichén Itzá as a cultural city center.

None of these raw materials are native to the Yucatán, which indicates that they were valuable objects brought to Chichén Itzá from other places in Central America and then sacrificed as an act of worship.

Pottery, stone, bone, and shells were also found in the cenote.

Archaeologists have found that many objects show evidence of being intentionally damaged before being thrown into the cenote, and have speculated that this intentional damage is meant to be analogous to “killing” the object as a sacrifice.

Human sacrifice

Certain cenotes contain a large number of human remains, including both males and females and young children/infants.

According to archaeologist Guillermo de Anda of the University of Yucatán, evidence from Mayan mythology suggests that many young victims (most aged 6 to 12) whose gender is indeterminate were male.

While the classical images of a female Mayan sacrifice being flung alive to drown in a cenote are pervasive, Guillermo de Anda’s writings on the subject suggest that most sacrificial victims – juveniles who were either purchased or captured while their parents were working in the fields, warriors captured in battle, or elites captured during conflicts with neighboring clans – were usually (though not always) killed prior to being thrown into the cenote, and in many cases, dozens of miles from the cenotes in which their bodies were eventually deposited. He also notes that only a certain set of cenotes was used in this way, while others were reserved for domestic purposes (de Anda 2007).

This suggests that Mayan religious officiants believed that only certain cenotes led to the underworld, and sacrifices placed in others would serve no purpose. It also suggests that the status of the victim as alive or dead was unimportant.

The occasional appearance of human remains in non-sacrificial cenotes can be attributed to rare errors in judgment on the part of the shaman. The actual pattern by which a particular victim’s remains became interred in which cenotes remains a subject of conjecture.

The Franciscan leader Diego de Landa reported that he witnessed live sacrifices being thrown into the cenote at Chichén Itzá. However, his account does not indicate the regularity of this behavior.

Chichen Itza is one of the most visited archaeological sites in Mexico. In 2014 it was estimated to receive an average of 1.4 million. In 2016, Chichen Itza was visited by more than 2 million tourists.

Tourism has been a factor at Chichen Itza for more than a century. John Lloyd Stephens, who popularized the Maya Yucatán in the public’s imagination with his book Incidents of Travel in Yucatan, inspired many to make a pilgrimage to Chichén Itzá.

Even before the book was published, Benjamin Norman and Baron Emanuel von Friedrichsthal traveled to Chichen after meeting Stephens, and both published the results of what they found.

Friedrichsthal was the first to photograph Chichen Itza, using the recently invented daguerreotype.

After Edward Thompson in 1894 purchased the Hacienda Chichén, which included Chichen Itza, he received a constant stream of visitors. In 1910 he announced his intention to construct a hotel on his property, but abandoned those plans, probably because of the Mexican Revolution.

In the early 1920s, a group of Yucatecans, led by writer/photographer Francisco Gomez Rul, began working toward expanding tourism to Yucatán. They urged Governor Felipe Carrillo Puerto to build roads to the more famous monuments, including Chichen Itza.

In 1923, Governor Carrillo Puerto officially opened the highway to Chichen Itza. Gomez Rul published one of the first guidebooks to Yucatán and the ruins.

Gomez Rul’s son-in-law, Fernando Barbachano Peon (a grandnephew of former Yucatán Governor Miguel Barbachano), started Yucatán’s first official tourism business in the early 1920s.

He began by meeting passengers who arrived by steamship at Progreso, the port north of Mérida, and persuading them to spend a week in Yucatán, after which they would catch the next steamship to their next destination. In his first year, Barbachano Peon reportedly was only able to convince seven passengers to leave the ship and join him on a tour.

In the mid-1920s Barbachano Peon persuaded Edward Thompson to sell 5 acres (20,000 m2) next to Chichen for a hotel. In 1930, the Mayaland Hotel opened, just north of the Hacienda Chichén, which had been taken over by the Carnegie Institution.

In 1944, Barbachano Peon purchased all of the Hacienda Chichén, including Chichen Itza, from the heirs of Edward Thompson.

Around that same time, the Carnegie Institution completed its work at Chichen Itza and abandoned the Hacienda Chichén, which Barbachano turned into another seasonal hotel.

In 1972, Mexico enacted the Ley Federal Sobre Monumentos y Zonas Arqueológicas, Artísticas e Históricas (Federal Law over Monuments and Archeological, Artistic, and Historic Sites) that put all the nation’s pre-Columbian monuments, including those at Chichen Itza, under federal ownership. There were now hundreds if not thousands, of visitors every year to Chichen Itza, and more were expected with the development of the Cancún resort area to the east.

In the 1980s, Chichen Itza began to receive an influx of visitors on the day of the spring equinox. Today several thousand show up to see the light-and-shadow effect on the Temple of Kukulcan in which the feathered serpent god appears to crawl down the side of the pyramid.

Tourists are also amazed by the acoustics at Chichen Itza. For instance, a handclap in front of the staircase of the El Castillo pyramid is followed by an echo that resembles the chirp of a quetzal as investigated by Declercq.

Chichen Itza, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is the second-most visited of Mexico’s archaeological sites. The archaeological site draws many visitors from the popular tourist resort of Cancún, who make a day trip on tour buses.

In 2007, Chichen Itza’s El Castillo was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World after a worldwide vote. Despite the fact that the vote was sponsored by a commercial enterprise and that its methodology was criticized, the vote was embraced by government and tourism officials in Mexico who project that as a result of the publicity the number of tourists expected to visit Chichen will double by 2012.

The ensuing publicity re-ignited debate in Mexico over the ownership of the site, which culminated on 29 March 2010 when the state of Yucatán purchased the land upon which the most recognized monuments rest from owner Hans Juergen Thies Barbachano.

Over the past several years, INAH, which manages the site, has been closing monuments to public access.

While visitors can walk around them, they can no longer climb them or go inside their chambers. The most recent was El Castillo, which was closed after a San Diego, California, woman fell to her death in 2006.

At the site, you get around on foot. Wear sturdy, comfortable walking shoes.

There is very little usable shade in the middle hours of the day.

Bring a pair of binoculars, star-gazing and birding are incredible in this region. Also, if you want to know more about the Mayan local communities, their cooking, religious rites, calendar system, and ancient arts, visit the small towns around Chichen.

Yaxkin Spa (Hacienda Chichen Hotel) offers holistic beauty rituals based on ancient Maya traditions. The area has excellent birdwatching opportunities. Guests at the Hacienda Chichen have access to the hotel’s bird refuge and extensive nature trails.

There are several fantastic cenotes, fresh water sinkholes in the limestone, found near Chichen Itza. Some of them are surrounded by lush gardens with restaurants, washrooms, and showers.

During a hot day, cenotes make for a great way to cool yourself off in the afternoon, take a break, and split up your day.

The Descent of Kukulcan During the three most celebrated days which witness The Descent of Kukulcan (the 19th, 20th, and 21st of March), Chichen Itza hosts music, dances, and theatrical performances organized in the interior of the site, as well as at the access door.

The collision that formed the Chicxulub crater occurred approximately 66 million years ago and is considered one of the most significant catastrophes in Earth’s history.

The exact nature of the object that collided with Earth is not fully understood, but the most likely hypothesis is a collision with an asteroid or comet. This cosmic object likely had a diameter of about 10 km.

A collision of this magnitude resulted in a powerful energetic event. Experts estimate that the impact energy was equivalent to tens of billions of tons of TNT, making it one of the most powerful events in the planet’s history.

The impact of such a cosmic object led to the formation of a massive crater approximately 180 km in diameter. More recent evidence suggests the actual crater is 300 km wide, and the 180 km ring is, in fact, an inner wall of it.

The collision released a tremendous amount of energy, causing fires in surrounding areas and significant temperature increases. A cloud of super-heated dust, ash, and steam would have spread from the crater as the impactor burrowed underground in less than a second.

A large amount of dust, gases, and debris ejected during the impact rose into the atmosphere, blocking sunlight. This led to ecosystem disruption and climate change lasting for a long period.

Excavated material along with pieces of the impactor, ejected out of the atmosphere by the blast, would have been heated to incandescence upon re-entry, broiling the Earth’s surface and possibly igniting wildfires; meanwhile, colossal shock waves would have triggered global earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

It is possible that the collision triggered the formation of massive tsunamis that spread across ocean basins. The impact would have caused a megatsunami over 100 m tall that would have reached what is now Texas and Florida.

These collision consequences, including prolonged darkness, climate cooling, and ecosystem destruction, led to the mass extinction of many species, including dinosaurs.

The emission of dust and particles could have covered the entire surface of the Earth for several years, possibly a decade, creating a harsh environment for living things. The shock production of carbon dioxide caused by the destruction of carbonate rocks would have led to a sudden greenhouse effect.

Over a decade or longer, sunlight would have been blocked from reaching the surface of the Earth by the dust particles in the atmosphere, cooling the surface dramatically. Photosynthesis by plants would also have been interrupted, affecting the entire food chain.

Compared to the Tunguska event or other large meteorite explosions, the impact that formed the Chicxulub crater was much more devastating and had longer-lasting consequences for the planet.

The Chicxulub crater was discovered through aeromagnetic surveys, which allow researchers to study the geological structure and rock composition beneath the Earth’s surface.

In the case of Chicxulub, aeromagnetic surveys revealed anomalies in the magnetic field around the Yucatán Peninsula. These anomalies indicated the presence of unusual geological structures beneath the surface, catching the attention of scientists and researchers.

Subsequent studies and drilling confirmed that the detected anomaly corresponds to an impact crater formed approximately 66 million years ago. This allowed scientists to better understand the crater’s structure, and geological origin, and expand our knowledge of the consequences of cosmic object collisions with Earth.

The discovery of the Chicxulub crater immediately sparked interest among scientists due to its enormous size and young age (approximately 66 million years).

Further research into the crater and its surrounding areas revealed characteristics typical of cosmic impacts, such as high levels of iridium (a metal usually rare on Earth but often present in asteroids and comets).

Scientists have also discovered that during the same period as the formation of the Chicxulub crater, there was a mass extinction event affecting many animal and plant species, including dinosaurs. This event is known as the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary catastrophe.

Based on this data, scientists hypothesized that the collision of an asteroid or comet with Earth led to this mass extinction. This hypothesis was confirmed by models showing how massive dust and gas emissions after the impact could have influenced the planet’s climate and ecological systems.

Further research, including analysis of geological sediments and textbooks, supported the hypothesis that the Chicxulub impact crater and the mass extinction at the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary were interconnected.

Thus, the theory that an asteroid or comet impact at Chicxulub caused the extinction of dinosaurs emerged from a combination of geological research and data on mass extinction, and has since gained wide acceptance within the scientific community.

The geography of Chuburná is characterized by a flat terrain typical of the Yucatan Peninsula. The region is primarily covered by dense tropical vegetation, including mangroves, palm trees, and lush greenery.

The proximity to the Gulf of Mexico ensures a tropical maritime climate with warm temperatures throughout the year.

One of the most notable natural features of Chuburná is its pristine beaches. The powdery white sands stretch for miles along the coastline, providing a perfect setting for sunbathing, swimming, and water sports.

The turquoise waters of the Gulf are ideal for snorkeling and fishing.

Chuburná is also home to diverse wildlife, with various bird species, reptiles, and marine life thriving in the area. It is not uncommon to spot colorful birds like flamingos and pelicans along the shorelines or encounter marine turtles in the Gulf’s waters.

The word Chuburná comes from the Mayan words ‘Chubul naah’, which in Spanish translates as “Chubul” (type of yellowish cotton) and “naah” (house or building), that is, the house of yellow cotton.

Another possible translation would be a place where houses flood.​

Chuburná has a tropical maritime climate, with warm temperatures and distinct wet and dry seasons.

The average annual temperature is 25.5 °C.

Dry Season (Winter): The dry season in Chuburná typically occurs from November to April.

During this period, the weather is pleasantly warm with lower humidity levels. It’s an excellent time for outdoor activities, beachgoing, and exploring the area, as rain is infrequent and skies are mostly clear.

Wet Season (Summer): The wet season extends from May to October. This period sees higher temperatures and increased humidity. Chuburná experiences frequent rainfall, often in the form of afternoon or evening thunderstorms.

These rains can be heavy at times, leading to lush vegetation and vibrant green landscapes.

Best time to visit Chuburná

The best time to visit Chuburná largely depends on your preferences and the type of experience you seek:

High Season (November to April): This period is considered the peak tourist season in Chuburná due to the pleasant weather. The dry season is ideal for beach lovers, and water sports enthusiasts.

Low Season (May to October): The wet season brings occasional heavy rains and higher humidity, but it also results in lush landscapes and fewer tourists. If you’re looking for a more budget-friendly trip and don’t mind occasional rain showers.

Shoulder Seasons: The transition months of November and April can offer a compromise between the high and low seasons. You can enjoy relatively pleasant weather with fewer crowds and potentially better deals on accommodations.

The best time to visit Chuburná depends on your personal preferences.

If you prefer dry and sunny weather for outdoor activities, aim for the dry season. If you’re more flexible and interested in experiencing the lushness of the wet season, then the low season might be a good choice.

Whichever time you choose, Chuburná’s natural beauty and cultural offerings will make for a memorable visit.

Chuburná is one of the oldest places in the municipality of Progreso.

Chuburná and Chicxulub were declared guarded populations of Yucatán in 1663 by the government of Juan Francisco Esquivel and de la Rosa for the defense of the coast against the incursion of the pirates that operated from the Lagoon of Terms.

Pre-Columbian Era: The Yucatan Peninsula, including Chuburná, was inhabited by the Mayan civilization. The Mayans established settlements and engaged in agriculture, trade, and cultural activities in the region.

Spanish Conquest: With the arrival of Spanish conquistadors in the early 16th century, the Yucatan Peninsula, including Chuburná, came under Spanish rule. The Spanish established missions and converted the local population to Christianity.

Colonial Period: Chuburná, like many other towns in the Yucatan, became a center of Spanish colonial activity. The town grew as a hub for trade, agriculture, and fishing.

Mexican Independence: Mexico gained independence from Spanish colonial rule in the early 19th century. Chuburná, like the rest of the Yucatan, became part of the newly independent nation.

20th Century: Chuburná saw gradual development during the 20th century, with infrastructure improvements and the growth of tourism. The construction of roads and modern amenities made the town more accessible to visitors.

Beachfront Relaxation: Chuburná is renowned for its pristine beaches with soft white sands and calm, turquoise waters. Visitors can relax on the beach, swim in the Gulf of Mexico, or simply soak up the sun.

Water Activities: The clear waters of the Gulf of Mexico offer excellent opportunities for water sports such as snorkeling, paddleboarding, and kayaking. You can rent equipment locally and explore the underwater world.

Bird Watching: Chuburná is a birdwatcher’s paradise. The nearby Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve is home to numerous bird species, including flamingos, herons, and pelicans. Birdwatching tours are available for enthusiasts.

Fishing: Fishing is a popular activity in Chuburná. You can join local fishermen on their boats for a day of fishing in the Gulf, where you might catch a variety of fish, including snapper and grouper.

Cenotes: The Yucatan Peninsula is known for its cenotes, natural sinkholes filled with freshwater. While Chuburná itself doesn’t have cenotes, there are several cenotes in the surrounding area that are worth exploring.

Exploring Mayan Ruins: While Chuburná doesn’t have its own major archaeological site, you can take day trips to nearby Mayan ruins like Uxmal and Chichen Itza, which offer fascinating insights into Mayan history and architecture.

Cultural Festivals: Check the local calendar for cultural events and festivals that often celebrate traditional music, dance, and cuisine, providing an opportunity to immerse yourself in the local culture.

Chuburná offers a delightful combination of natural beauty, cultural heritage, and recreational activities, making it an excellent destination for those seeking a tranquil and immersive experience in the Yucatan Peninsula.

Getting to Chuburná

If you’re traveling within the Yucatan Peninsula or from other parts of Mexico, renting a car is a convenient option. Chuburná is accessible via the highway network, and the drive from Merida takes around 30-40 minutes.

Public buses also serve the Yucatan Peninsula, including routes to Merida. From Merida, you can take a local bus or taxi to Chuburná. However, bus schedules may be less frequent, so it’s advisable to check in advance.

Moving Around Chuburná

Chuburná itself is relatively small and walkable.

Chuburná is a relatively small coastal town, and many of its attractions, restaurants, and beaches are within walking distance of each other. Walking is an enjoyable way to explore the town and its picturesque surroundings.

Cycling is a great way to get around locally and explore the town at a leisurely pace.

Taxis are readily available in Chuburná and can be hailed on the street or booked through your accommodation. They are a convenient way to reach nearby attractions or explore the broader region.

If you’ve rented a car, you’ll have the flexibility to explore Chuburná and its surroundings at your own pace. Parking is generally available at most accommodations and attractions.

Chuburná may have local bus services that connect it with nearby towns and attractions. However, these services might have limited schedules, so it’s a good idea to inquire locally about routes and timetables.

The site has been continuously occupied for thousands of years, although it has expanded and contracted from a mid-sized city to a small town more than once in its long history.

Restoration continues at Dzibilchaltun with over 35 sq km investigated by international archaeologists. 8,000 structures have been identified but only a small portion excavated.

Due to the long history of this particular site and the various influences from both Maya and Spanish communities, INAH has added an on-site museum on some of the great architectural features of the buildings and artifacts.

Dzibilchaltun ruins are located near Merida. Archaeologists estimate there were as many as 200,000 inhabitants and 8,400 buildings during its history with artifacts dating back to the middle of the classic period (700 – 800 CE).

Dzibilchaltun was a large settlement and was still occupied when the Spanish arrived during the 1500s. Highlights are the large plaza, sacbe trails, the Temple of the Dolls, and the Open Chapel, an unusual amphitheater-shaped structure.

Dzibilchaltun doesn’t have huge pyramids like Chichen Itza or Uxmal, but it does have unique features that make it a worthwhile site to visit. It was once a wealthy port and center of Mayan coastal trade with a peak population of about 200,000.

The population declined as Chichen Itza rose to power.

The Maya lived here from 300 BCE to the time of the Spanish invasions. The Spanish continued to build in the city once they arrived and visitors can see the Franciscan chapel that lies in the middle of the Mayan ruins.

Temple of the Dolls

Templo de las Siete Muñecas, the Temple of the Dolls, is an impressive building on a pyramid base with one short tower on its roof and a stelae in front of the building.

The temple was discovered by archaeologists in the 1950s under the ruins of a larger pyramid which was constructed on top of The Temple of the Dolls.

Building temples on top of temples was a common practice with the Maya. The dolls were found in the buried temple, but are now housed in the museum to protect and preserve these architectural features.

Though the dolls have been moved, the ingenuity of this building remains. The Temple of the Dolls and its temple doorways were constructed in a specific and deliberate direction that confirms the Maya understanding of the solar system.

During the Spring and Autumn equinox, the sun’s rays pass through the doorways of the temples.

Since corn remained a major part of the Maya diet, this event had great significance to the Maya as it represented the beginning and end of harvest season honoring Yum Kax, the Maya god of corn.

The site is open at 17:30 on those two days so visitors can view the phenomenon.

The temple is connected to the rest of the site by a sacbe, or “white road,” so-called because they were originally coated with white limestone, and built over stone-and-rubble fill.

The Open Chapel

An ancient Mayan roadway leading from the Temple of the Seven Dolls connects to the central plaza and an unusual arched structure called the Open Chapel.

When the Spanish arrived in the 16th Century, they dismantled some of the buildings in this settlement and used the stone to construct their buildings, including this 16th-century Franciscan church that now lies in ruins on the site.

This is the only Mayan ruin that has Spanish buildings co-existing with Mayan structures.

Cenote Xlakah

Cenote Xlakah is a beautiful freshwater pool located to the side of the main plaza.

It was the city’s freshwater source and perhaps the main reason the Maya chose this location to build their settlement. Water from Cenote Xlakah would have been perfect for residential drinking water and irrigation of their fields.

Under the surface, Cenote Xlakah reaches depths of 44 meters.

According to the plaque near the water’s edge, Xlakah means “old town” in Maya.

The cenote was first explored from 1957-59 when thousands of pottery shards and urns were found in the water along with wood, stone, and bone artifacts. The earthenware dates to the Late Classic Periods of 600-1000 CE.

Visitors to Dzibilchaltun can swim in the cenote during their tour.

Dzibilchaltun Museum

The museum is located by the entrance to the ruins site.

The site’s museum is full of interesting artifacts. Carved stone tablets, stelae, and the original carved dolls are displayed alongside Maya hupiles, old textile machinery, maps, Spanish armor, swords, and other weapons.

The other major feature of Dzibilchaltún is its cenote, Cenote Xlakah, located around the center of the city’s ruins. It is thought that the availability of this source of clean drinking water influenced the builders’ choice of location.

Archaeological findings retrieved from the cenote by divers indicate that it was the center of a religious cult. These days the cenote is used as a swimming hole by residents and tourists year round.

Dzibilchaltún also contains the ruin of a 16th-century Spanish church built at the site after the conquest.

The Dzibilchaltun archeological site also includes a visitor center with maps, restrooms, and gift shops. The renovated museum housing Mayan artifacts located at the site has re-opened.

Dzibilchaltun is only 9 miles from Merida.

Merida taxi drivers would be happy to take you to this site or you can hop on public transportation to the site.
From Mérida by taxi will take about 20 minutes and will cost $3-$10.

Combi vans (collectivos) can be found on Calle 69 between 62 and 64 in San Juan Park, Merida.
These vans go directly to Dzibilchaltun.

• The entrance fee is 139 MXN for non-Mexicans.
• Entry fees include access to the museum.
• Open from 8:00 to 17:00

The site of Dzibilchaltún has various services to make the visitor comfortable: a restaurant, a gift shop, an information booth, medical services, telephone, handicapped facilities, restrooms, and parking.

Yucatán experiences a tropical climate, characterized by warm temperatures throughout the year. The rainy season typically spans from June to October, while the dry season extends from November to April.

Consider planning your visit during the dry season, from November to April.

During this period, the weather is more predictable, and the chances of rain are significantly lower. The months of December to February offer pleasant temperatures without the discomfort of excessive heat.

Ek Balam (from Yucatec Maya “Éekꞌ Báalam” (“Jaguar Star”).

Previously, there was doubt about the ancestral name of this site.

The particle éekꞌ can mean both “star” and refer to the color black, but thanks to the discovery of the Mayan glyph emblem of this city, it can be said with certainty that the correct translation would be “Jaguar Star”.

Ek’ Balam was occupied from the Middle Preclassic through the Postclassic. At the beginning of the Late Preclassic, the population grew. Ek Balam came to control the region around the beginning of the Common Era.

From its modest beginnings, in the year 300 BC, until the arrival of the Spanish, the human settlement in Ek Balam reached about 12 sq km, which included a central sacred space of 1 sq km, where the elite resided.

Defensive Walls

The site layout is surrounded by two concentric walls which serve as a defense against attack. There were many smaller walls that snaked through the city as well.

The inner wall encompasses an area of 9.55 hectares. The carved stone of the inner wall, 2 m tall and 3 m wide, is covered in plaster; the outer wall serves purely for defense, as it is less substantial and less decorative.

These walls were the largest in the Late Classic Yucatan, and seem to have a symbolic meaning of protection and military strength.

Theories claiming a hasty desertion of the city are backed up by the fourth wall inside the city, which “bisects the Great Plaza, and, at less than a meter wide and made of poorly constructed rubble, it was clearly built as a last-ditch effort at protection” against invading attackers.

Structures Inside the Walls

Only the center of Ek’ Balam has been excavated. Large, raised platforms line the interior wall, surrounding internal plazas.

Sacbé roads stem off of the center in the four cardinal directions, an architectural allusion to the idea of a “four-part cosmos”. These roads are often understood to have been sacred.

The buildings were designed in the northern Petén architectural style, as were the surrounding large cities of the time, although it has its dissimilarities with them as well.

The Acropolis houses the tomb of King Ukit Kan Le’k Tok’, who ruled from 770 (the starting year of the “height” of this city) to 797 or 802 CE.

Wall Paintings

In rooms of the Acropolis, wall paintings consisting of texts have been found, amongst these the ‘Mural of the 96 Glyphs’, a masterwork of calligraphy comparable to the ‘Tablet of the 96 Glyphs’ from Palenque.

Another wall painting of the Acropolis features a mythological scene with a hunted deer, which has been interpreted as the origin of death. A series of vault capstones depict the lightning deity, a specific decoration also known from other Yucatec sites.

View from the top

On a clear day, from the top of the Acrópolis, the temples of Cobá and Chichén Itzá can be seen on the horizon.

• Temple Ixmoja of Cobá is approximately at azimuth 135° (Southeast) at a distance of 65 km.
• El Castillo of Chichén Itzá is approximately at azimuth 242° (West-Southwest) at a distance of 55 km.

Ek’ Balam was rediscovered and explored first by influential archaeologist Désiré Charnay in the late 1800s but extensive excavation did not take place until a century later.

Bill Ringle and George Bey III mapped the site in the late 1980s and continued to do extensive research into the 1990s, their works being cited by many others who later wrote on the site.

Subsequently, the Acropolis was excavated by Leticia Vargas de la Peña and Víctor Castillo Borges from the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia.

Alfonso García-Gallo Lacadena deciphered the most important set of North Maya Maya hieroglyphic texts and all historical references of Ek Balam are based on his intellectual work.

• Given the warm climate, staying hydrated is crucial. Carry a water bottle with you.
• Wear lightweight, breathable clothing and comfortable shoes suitable for walking on uneven terrain.
• Don’t forget to apply sunscreen, wear a hat, and bring sunglasses to shield yourself from the sun’s rays.

Ik Kil is near the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza, on the highway to Valladolid.

Easily accessible from Chichen Itza and nearby towns.

From Chichen Itza

By taxi from Chichen Itza to Ik Kil cenote (0:03/0:05 min).

From Merida

By bus to Chichen Itza o Pisté (1:45 min), just 3 times a day (by the morning).
There are also “colectivos” from Merida to Chichen Itza or Pisté.
And then by taxi to the cenote (0:03/0:05 min).

From Valladolid

By bus to Chichen Itza o Pisté (0:45 min), each 4 hours.
There are also a lot of “colectivo” from Valladolid to Chichen Itza or Pisté.
And then by taxi to the cenote (0:03/0:05 min).

By taxi from Valladolid to Ik Kil cenote (0:35 min).

In 2010, the city’s estimated population was 16,000 people.

The Maya language is still heard at least as much as Spanish in Izamal. It is the first language in the homes of the majority of the people. Most signs are in both languages.

Pre-Columbian Izamal

Izamal is an important archaeological site of the Pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is probably the biggest city of the Northern Yucatec Plains, covering a minimal urban extension of 53 square kilometers.

Izamal was continuously occupied throughout most of Mesoamerican chronology. Until the 16th century, Izamal was a mighty Mayan city, with six pyramids around a huge ceremonial plaza at the largest urban center in the North Yucatec Plains.

Its monumental buildings exceed 1,000,000 cubic meters of constructive volume and at least two raised causeways, known by their Mayan term sacbeob, connect it with other important centers, Ruins of Ake, located 29 kilometers to the west and Kantunil, 18 kilometers to the south, evidencing the religious, political and economic power of this political unit over a territory of more than 5,000 square kilometers in extension.

Izamal developed a particular construction technique involving the use of megalithic carved blocks, with defined architectonical characteristics like rounded corners, projected moldings, and thatched roofs at superstructures, which also appeared in other important urban centers within its hitherland, such as Ake, Uci, and Dzilam.

The city was founded during the Late Formative Period (750–200 BC) and was continuously occupied until the Spanish Conquest.

The most important constructive activity stage spans between Protoclassic (200 BC – 200 AD) and Late Classic (600–800 AD). It was partially abandoned with the rise of Chichen Itza in the Terminal Classic (800–1000 A.D.) until the end of the Precolumbian era, when Izamal was considered a site of pilgrimages in the region, rivaled only by Chichen Itza.

Its principal temples were sacred to the creator deity Itzamna and to the Sun god Kinich Ahau.

Five huge Pre-Columbian structures are still easily visible at Izamal (and two from some distance away in all directions).

The first is a great pyramid to the Maya Sun god, Kinich Kak Moo (makaw of the solar fire face) with a base covering over 8,000 m² of the ground and a volume of some 700,000 cubic meters. Atop this grand base is a pyramid of ten levels.

To the south-east lies another great temple, called Itzamatul, and placed at the south of what was the main plaza, another huge building, called Ppap Hol Chak, was partially destroyed with the construction of a Franciscan temple during the 16th century.

The south-west side of the plaza is partially limited by another pyramid, the Hun Pik Tok, and in the west lie the remains of the temple known as Kabul, where a great stucco mask still existed on one side as recently as the 1840s, and a drawing of it by Frederick Catherwood was published by John Lloyd Stephens.

All these large man-made mounds probably were built up over several centuries and originally supported city palaces and temples.

Other important residential buildings that have been restored and can be visited are Xtul (The Rabbit), Habuc, and Chaltun Ha.

After more than a decade of archaeological work done by Mexican archaeologists at Izamal, over 163 archaeologically important structures have been found there, and thousands of residential structures at surrounding communities have been located.

Spanish Colonial era

After Bishop Diego de Landa arrived at Izamal’s mission in the mid-16th century the city would never be the same again, and colonial buildings were placed right on top of Mayan monuments.

After the Spanish conquest of Yucatán in the 16th century, a Spanish colonial city was founded atop the existing Maya one; however, it was decided that it would take a prohibitively large amount of work to level these two huge structures and so the Spanish contented themselves with placing a small Christian temple atop the great pyramid and building a large Franciscan Monastery atop the acropolis. It was named after San Antonio de Padua.

Completed in 1561, the open atrium of the Monastery is still today second in size only to that at the Vatican. Most of the cut stone from the Pre-Columbian city was reused to build the Spanish churches, monastery, and surrounding buildings.

Izamal was the first chair of the Bishops of Yucatán before they were moved to Mérida. The fourth Bishop of Yucatán, Diego de Landa lived here.

Modern history

The town of Izamal was first granted the status of a city by the government of Yucatán on 4 December 1841. On 13 August 1923 it was demoted to town status. It was again officially ranked as a city on 1 December 1981.

Pope John Paul II visited Izamal in August 1993, where he performed a mass and presented the statue of the Virgin with a silver crown.

Downtown Architecture

While the center of Izamal isn’t bursting with sights, you’ll fall in love with its colorful colonial architecture going back to the 16th century.

Izamal is often called the “Ciudad Amarilla” (Yellow City) and almost every building is painted in a yellow ochre, while cornices, door frames, and window frames are a bright white.

Amateur photographers will get some eye-popping shots, and the houses are equally beautiful when their yellow facades show a patina of age.

On the south side of the plaza, Parque 5 de Mayo, is the shop Hecho a Mano, selling folk arts and crafts (wood-carvings, embroidered textiles) from around Yucatán.

Convento de San Antonio de Padua

The Convento de San Antonio de Padua is a prime example of how the Izamal’s 16th-century Spanish settlers repurposed the city’s Mayan architecture.

This Baroque monastery is on top of the Pop-Hol-Chac pyramid used to stand here.

Dedicated to the god of the heavens, Itzamna, the Pop-Hol-Chac pyramid was the largest of Izamal’s six Mayan platforms and is still the highest part of the city today.

The Franciscan monastery on top was raised between 1549 and 1561, using stone from the pre-Hispanic monument.

Tallying with the enormous proportions of the pyramid, the courtyard (atrio) is said to be the second largest in the Christian world behind the Vatican.

The church interior has frescoes from the 16th and 17th centuries and a Baroque altar with opulent gilt-wood decoration and painted scenes from the life of Jesus.

Atrio del Convento de San Antonio de Padua

The most impressive thing about the monastery is certainly its sweeping rectangular courtyard (atrio). At more than 7,800 square meters, it’s definitely the largest in the Americas and, as we mentioned, possibly the second largest in the world. You can negotiate the arcades that trace this massive space and survey the “Yellow City”, thrilled by the thought that you’re standing on a Mayan pyramid.

In the middle of the courtyard near the entrance to the church is a statue of John Paul II erected to commemorate his visit in 1993.

Kinich Kakmó Pyramid

An inescapable presence to the north of the city center is an immense Mayan pyramid and the best remaining remnant of Izamal’s pre-Hispanic history.

The Kinich Kakmó Pyramid was dedicated to the solar god of the same name.

Kinich Kakmó means “fire parrot” and this god, with the head of a macaw, was believed to descend to the ground when the sun was at its zenith to accept offerings.

The pyramid is unadorned but is one of the largest in Mexico at 700,000 cubic meters.

You’re allowed to climb to the top, and while it isn’t an easy hike in the midday sun, the view from the top is the best in the city.

Centro Cultural y Artesanal

On the north frontage of Parque 5 de Mayo is a museum in a 16th-century mansion.

This opened in 2007 after being converted from a hotel and presents the work of the most accomplished craftsmen and women in the city.

The museum has 11 halls and its exhibits are divided into five categories: wood, ceramics, metal, textiles and items woven from plant fibers like henequen.

There’s creative jewelry fashioned from palm seeds and cattle horns, alebrijes (wacky papier-mâché monsters), and Calavera Catrinas, skeleton figures made for Día de Muertos.

There’s also a small exhibition about hacienda architecture in the region, and a shop where you can buy pieces by the artisans in the galleries.

Itzamatul

One of the largest monuments on Izamal’s lost Mayan plaza, Itzamatul was a monument built over three phases.

The earliest work was done around 400-600 AD and consisted of a base with a light gradient and stairways.

This was covered by a more vertical “slope and panel” construction about 300 years later, which has been restored and can be scaled.

Look north and you can see the Kinich Kakmó Pyramid and get a sense of the layout of the lost Mayan Plaza.

The final phase between the 10th and 12th centuries would have been a gigantic pyramid, of which only the 100-meter-long base and a short stairway remains.

Like Pop-Hol-Chac, Itzamatul was dedicated to the god of the heavens, Itzamna, and would have drawn pilgrims from across the region.

Temple of Kabul

On the west side of the Parque Itzamna plaza are the vestiges of a temple that is only now being excavated.

The name “Kabul” is Mayan for “Miraculous Hand”, and when it was complete this monument would have measured more than 60 meters in length and nine meters high.

Its sides were once coated with stucco decorations, and when the English explorer Frederick Catherwood came to Izamal in 1843 he drew a sketch of an imposing stucco mask as high as the wall itself.

Sadly this decoration has since disappeared.

Monumento a Fray Diego de Landa

On a roundabout facing the southern wall of the Convento de San Antonio de Padua is a monument to Izamal’s colonial founder Diego de Landa.

Drop by for a photo as he’s one of the reasons Izamal looks the way it does today.

He arrived in Yucatán in 1549, three years after the Spanish had established control of the region, and was in charge of spreading Catholicism to the Mayans.

His methods were extreme, to say the least, and involved burning invaluable codices and wholesale destruction of Mayan sites, sometimes transforming them into Catholic monuments, as we see at Izamal.

As a paradox, during this campaign, Diego de Landa also became the earliest and one of the most reliable documenters of the Mayan civilization.

Parque Itzamna

Izamal’s main plaza is on the north side of the Convento de San Antonio de Padua, and in the Mexican style, there’s a colorful sign spelling out the city’s name.

The square is planted with royal palms, tamarinds, and elephant-ear trees and is bounded by arcades and the ramps to the monastery.

In the arcades are cafes, ice cream shops, and taquerias, while if you take a seat and look over the western facade you can see the top of the Temple of Kabul.