 |
|
|
UER Store
|
|
order your copy of Access All Areas today!
|
|
|
|
Activity
|
|
736 online
Server Time:
2024-04-19 09:10:04
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Location DB >
Mexico >
Tlaxcala >
Tlaxcala >
Xochitecatl
|
|
Log in to activate viewing options
|
|
|
created by lopix
on 7/18/2005 1:05 AM
last modified by lopix
on 7/30/2005 4:16 PM
|
|
 |
Publically Viewable |
|
This location has been labeled by its creator as Public, and therefore can be viewed by anyone.
|
|
|
|
Situated on a high Mexican plain, around 7,500 ft. above sea level, Xochitécatl is a small ceremonial center located on top of an extinct volcano overlooking Cacaxtla, about 1km ( 1/2 mile) to the east and in plain sight of Cacaxtla. It was probably inhabited, at least in the Classical period, by the same people living in Cacaxtla.
A curious circular pyramid stands atop this hill, 600 ft. above the surrounding countryside. Beside it are two other pyramids and three massive boulders (one about 3m/10 ft. in diameter), which were hollowed out for some reason. Hollowed boulders appear to have been restricted to the Puebla-Tlaxcala valley.
Excavation of the Edificio de la Espiral (circular pyramid), dated between 1000 and 800 B.C. (middle formative period), encountered no stairways. Access is thought to have been by its spiral walkway. Rounded boulders from the nearby Zahuapan and Atoyac rivers were used in its construction. Rounded pyramids in this part of Mexico are thought to have been dedicated to Ehécatl, god of the wind. The base diameter exceeds 180 ft. and it rises to a height of 50 ft.
The stepped and terraced Pyramid of the Flowers, made of rounded boulders, was started during the middle formative period. Modifications continued into colonial times, as exemplified by faced-stone and stucco-covered adobe. Of the 30 bodies found during excavations, all but one were children.
Little is known about the people who built Xochitécatl, but at least part of the time they were contemporaneous with neighboring Cacaxtla. Evidence suggests that the area was dedicated to Xochitl, goddess of flowers and fertility.
|
|
|
Type: Ruins
Status: Active
Accessibility: Easy
Recommendation: check it out if you're nearby
|
|
|
|
|
|
spiral pyramid
hollowed boulders
big pyramid
amazing view
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The name of this site comes from the náhuatl words xochitl, flower, and tecatl, place, and therefore it has been translated as "Place of flowers" or "Place of the lineage of flowers".
Its historical background has been perfectly recorded since the XVI century by Tlaxcaltecan chronicler Diego Muñoz Camargo. In his History of Tlaxcala he wrote: …and they founded where now is the town of Santa María de la Natividad… and the Xochitécatl hill. Another XVI century chronicler, Juan Buenaventura Zapata, reports: …and when they came to the place they call Texcallan, they saw that over there in Xochitecatitlán …lived those they called Olmeca Xicalancas. In the 1632 Codex Xochitécatl, which is a document of land ownership of the community of San Miguel Xochitecatitla, it is possible to see the Xochitécatl hill and on its top two mounds, one of which is crowned by a cross, just as the Building of the Spiral looks nowadays. Represented by a mountain of flowers on the summit, the glyph for Xochitécatl appears in the Map of Cuauhtinchan number two.
The 1874 painting The valley of Ocotlán, by José María Velasco, depicts Xochitécatl hill with a mound on its summit and the volcanoes in the background. In 1883 Howe Bancroft published his article Xochitécatl is part of a series of fortifications that cover a hill. Mr. Alfonso Luis Velasco published in 1892 his book Geography and Statistics of the State of Tlaxcala. In the section entitled "Antiquities" he wrote: The most outstanding in the State of Tlaxcala, and which were miraculously saved from the conquistador’s fanaticism, are the following: … and in Xochitecatitla on the Xochitecatl hill some stones used for human sacrifice …The ruins of Xochitecatl must be mentioned as outstanding… All these ruins belong to the first settlements founded by the ulmecas and the xicalancas in the early XIII century, in the place where now is the town of Nativitas, and are worth studying.
In 1939 the Panamerican Institute of Geography and History edited the Archaeological Atlas of the Mexican Republic. In the section devoted to the state of Tlaxcala, 16 sites were recorded, including Xochitécatl, which is called Xochitecatitla. In the early 1940’s Dr. Pedro Armillas drew the first topographic plan of the archaeological site of Cacaxtla, and included Xochitécatl, as well as a description of the site. In 1969 German archaeologist Bodo Spranz made some sampling cuts or sondages in the Pyramid of the Flowers and the Platform of Volcanoes. In the latter he found several offerings of female figurines, from which stands out a skinless one that has been identified as the goddess Tlazoltéotl, as well as a skull showing dental mutilation and inlays of green stone and pyrites.
An important discovery took place in 1978, when two anthropomorphic sculptures were found in Xochitécatl hill. The largest one represents a female figure with dropping breasts and with her hands over the abdomen, and is probably represented as pregnant. The second one belongs to a male figure, and they are both now in the town of San José Atoyatenco. Excavations as part of the Archaeological-Ecological Project began in 1993, during which more than 90 thousand trees of different species were planted, all four buildings were excavated and a site museum was created. Fieldwork was coordinated by archaeologists Ludwig Beutelspacher and Mari-Carmen Serra.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The moderator rating is a neutral rating of the content quality, photography, and coolness of this location.
| Category |
Rating |
| Photography |
10 / 10 |
| Coolness |
7 / 10 |
| Content Quality |
8 / 10 |
|
|
This location's validation is current. It was last validated by
ednothing on 8/5/2005 2:40 PM.
|
|
|
on Jul 30 05 at 16:16, lopix changed the main information
on Jul 30 05 at 16:15, lopix changed the main information
on Jul 18 05 at 1:40, lopix changed the main information
on Jul 18 05 at 1:39, lopix made this location available
on Jul 18 05 at 1:39, lopix updated a gallery picture
on Jul 18 05 at 1:37, lopix changed the main information
on Jul 18 05 at 1:34, lopix updated a gallery picture
on Jul 18 05 at 1:34, lopix updated a gallery picture
on Jul 18 05 at 1:33, lopix updated a gallery picture
on Jul 18 05 at 1:33, lopix updated a gallery picture
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Is this location inappropriate / broken / missing key info?
If it's something you can fix, please scroll up and click the EDIT button.
If this location was only posted a few days ago, give the creator time to work on it.
Please try sending a message directly to the creator of the location. You'll find that info at the top of this page.
Otherwise, ONLY if you've already tried to contact the original creator,: Click here to notify an administrator.
|
|
|
|
All content and images copyright © 2002-2024 UER.CA and respective creators. Graphical Design by Crossfire.
To contact webmaster, or click to email with problems or other questions about this site:
UER CONTACT
View Terms of Service |
View Privacy Policy |
Server colocation provided by Beanfield
This page was generated for you in 78 milliseconds. Since June 23, 2002, a total of 738485698 pages have been generated.
|
|
Name
Viewing Options
Database Info
Viewability
Description
Basic Information
Physical Information
Hazards
Interesting Features
Security Measures
Historical Dates
Required Equipment
Recommended Equipment
History
Media Coverage
Future Plans
Stories
Web Links
Contribute
Moderator Rating
Validation
Latest Changes
Who's been looking?
Report Problems