Chichen Itza

Chichen Itza, also called "the Promised Land" is a huge archaeological site, located in the Yucatan Peninsula and dates from the pre-Columbian times.

The site is the clearest proof of the largest Mayan-Toltec civilization existed. Maya was one of the largest and most advanced Mesoamerican civilizations during preclumbiana and they have reached its peak between AD 300-900 d., otherwise we don't know how they came, nor how they disappeared .

After their disappearance, at present remained Chichen Itza, which, translated from the Mayan is "At the mouth of the fountain Itza".

The site is composed of several establishments, buildings or ruins:
• Pyramid of Kukulcan, also called El Castillo,
• the Observatory,
• the War Temple (it is the temple of Chichen Itza itself, hence the name of the site),
• the 1000 Columns Square,
• the Temple of the Jaguar,
• Temple of the Oval Court,
• the Road to the place of the sacrifices,
• Temple Man Male,
• the Skull Platform - of Venus, of the Sparrow Hawk and the Ossuary Jaguar.

The most significant include the El Castillo, the War Temple and the Observatory.

Temple of Kukulcan or Quetzalcoatl - El Castillo - is a pyramid with a height of around 30 meters, with 385 steps, 18 terraces close to 2.5 meters and 52 boards, and the name of Quetzalcoatl is just another name for the god Kukulcan. The pyramid was built in pure Mesoamerican style and not only that. According to legend, the Mesoamerican had the habit to build large buildings over the smaller ones and the archaeologists discovered under the pyramid from Chichen Itza several trempte, in the northern part of the pyramid, and a temple buried deeper under the pyramid. Inside the room they found numerous Chac Mool statues. Also under the Kukulcan pyramid has been discovered a throne in the shape of the Jaguar, red and inlaid with jade stones, which currently is not accessible to large public. Another interesting aspect of the pyramid is that during the spring and autumn equinox, at sunset, you can see the shadows which take the form of a snake on the steps of the pyramid. The effect of this was done using artificial light during the night, to try to discover how the shadows take the form of a snake.

The Observatory or El Coracol - shows how preoccupied and how advanced were the Mayans regarding their knowledge of astronomy and architecture. Architecture is mentioned because the Mayans built their houses according to the movements of planets. The pyramid of Chichen Itza, through the snake-shaped shadows they propagate on stage during the equinoxes, is the perfect example of this. The Observatory measure 22 meters, of which only the tower is 13 meters. Initially, when it was discovered the Observatory, it was thought that belongs to another civilization because didn't correspond to the classical maya architecture.

The War Temple - is 40 meters wide and only 10 meters high. He is among the most significant buildings in Chichen Itza, because it shows the influence of the Toltec civilization in the ancient Mayan culture. The temple itself is a perfect copy of the temple from the capital of the Toltec civilization. The legend says that the temple was built for the military elite of the Eagle and the Jaguar platforms, especially, the last part of the War Temple was built later after the first part of it, and is full of drawings and sculptures embodying images of a jaguar and an eagle eating hearts. Besides these images are encountered images of the Kukulcan, the Sun and the Earth and the drawings inside the temple describe the life that the people led during the Mayan civilization.

Currently, the site Chichen Itza from the Yucatan peninsula is under UNESCO Patrimony since 1998, is one of the most visited attractions of Mexico, and in 2010, according to a popular vote, Chichen Itza was chosen one of the seven new wonders of world, and if you go on a trip to this place you will benefit from a unique experience and some unforgettable memories.
Less