|
|
chichen itza pyramid is a
large pre-Columbian archaeological site built by the Maya
civilization located in the northern center of the Yucatán
Peninsula, in the Yucatán state, present-day Mexico.
chichen itza pyramid
was a major regional focal point in the northern Maya lowlands
from the Late Classic through the Terminal Classic and into
the early portion of the Early Postclassic period. The site
exhibits a multitude of architectural styles, from what is called
“Mexicanized” and reminiscent of styles seen in
central Mexico to the Puuc style found among the Puuc Maya of
the northern lowlands. The presence of central Mexican styles
was once thought to have been representative of direct migration
or even conquest from central Mexico, but most contemporary
interpretations view the presence of these non-Maya styles more
as the result of cultural diffusion.
 |
chichen itza pyramid History
Northern Yucatán is arid, and the interior
has no above-ground rivers. There are two large, natural sink
holes, called cenotes, that could have provided plentiful water
year round at Chichen, making it attractive for settlement.
Of the two cenotes, the "Cenote Sagrado" or Sacred
Cenote (also variously known as the Sacred Well or Well of Sacrifice),
is the more famous. 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 recent study of human
remains taken from the Cenote Sagrado found that they had wounds
consistent with human sacrifice.
|
 |
main
menu |
 |
|
|