{"id":1801,"date":"2010-06-27T10:49:40","date_gmt":"2010-06-27T14:49:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/richard.rathe.org\/?page_id=1801"},"modified":"2012-01-03T09:39:34","modified_gmt":"2012-01-03T13:39:34","slug":"mayan-ruins-yucatan-2009","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/mayan-ruins-yucatan-2009","title":{"rendered":"Mayan Ruins 2009"},"content":{"rendered":"

In 2009 I took a short vacation in the Yucatan<\/em><\/strong><\/a> with my brother and sister-in-law<\/a>. We started and ended our tip at Merida<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, which has a delightful old city center to explore. [photo gallery<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Uxmal<\/h2>\n

First on our list was Uxmal<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, my personal favorite! Located in the gently rolling Puuc Hills<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, it is one of several significant Late Classic Mayan<\/strong><\/em><\/a> centers in that area. [photo gallery<\/strong><\/a>]<\/p>\n

The so-called Pyramid of the Magician<\/a> <\/strong>dominates the modern entrance to the site (showing its less elaborate back side<\/a>). The main temple entrance takes the form of a huge mouth<\/a>, still intimidating even today. The pyramid was actually built in five stage<\/em>s<\/a>, each covering older parts of the structure. Next to this lies the Nunnery Quadrangle<\/strong><\/a>, actually a palace or government building, with its cross-hatched facades<\/a> and numerous masks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The site has many other attractions including: a huge rectangular building called the Governor’s Palace<\/strong><\/a>; a taller Grand Pyramid<\/strong><\/a> that sort of blends into the forest; the Dovecote Temple<\/strong><\/a>; a Ball Court<\/strong><\/a>; and a double-headed Jaguar Throne<\/strong><\/a>. There were also plenty of lizards<\/a> and birds<\/a> in residence. Here’s a panorama<\/a> from the top of the Grand Pyramid (large file).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The site had many intact rooms<\/a>, all based on the Corbel Arch<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.\"\"<\/a> The example shown here<\/a> is particularly beautiful\/impressive. Note how the walls gently curve toward the center where the tiny “ceiling” fills the gap.<\/p>\n

Apparently there is new insight into the ubiquitous masks at Uxmal<\/a>, Chichen Itza<\/a>, and other Mayan sites in the Yucatan. Rather than representing the rain god Chaac<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, scholars propose that they denote hill or mountain beings (witz)<\/em><\/a> and confer sacred status to the structures on which they appear.<\/p>\n

Chichen Itza<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a> Next on our tour was Chichen Itza<\/em><\/strong><\/a>, perhaps the most famous Mayan ruin of all. [photo gallery<\/strong><\/a>] Most of what we see today is a combination of Terminal Classic Maya<\/em><\/strong><\/a> and Post-Classic newcomers such as the Toltecs<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

The site is dominated by the iconic <\/strong>El Castillo Pyramid<\/strong><\/a>, which was dedicated to the feathered serpent god Kukulkan<\/em><\/strong><\/a>. The restored stairway is flanked by gigantic stone serpents<\/a>. Additional buried sturctures<\/a> have recently been discovered at its base. The numerological and astronomical aspects of this temple are many, but my favorite is how a <\/em>sunlit snake appears every equinox<\/em><\/a>. If you clap your hands you will hear an eerie bird call<\/a> (which our guide claimed was a Quetzal<\/em><\/strong><\/a>).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Temple of the Warriors<\/strong><\/a> is a fantastic edifice, with many carved columns<\/a>. Each carved side depicts a warrior in full regalia with a huge headdress<\/a> standing on a mystical serpent. Unfortunately I was limited to walking around it so I could not get close to the better parts. <frown> The temple is contiguous with a huge array of circular columns<\/a> that once supported a roof. One platform is ringed by carvings of eagles and jaguars<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Mirroring this theme across a broad grassy area in front of the Castillo is the small but elegant Platform of Eagles and Jaguars<\/strong><\/a>. It has well-preserved reliefs<\/a> and snakehead ornamentation<\/a> on all sides.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Behind the temple is a series of low platforms ending in the Tzompantli<\/em><\/strong><\/a> or Skull Rack<\/strong><\/a>. Apparently the skulls of captives and sacrificial victims were displayed here stacked on wooden stakes.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Platform of Venus<\/strong> sported carvings of men emerging from the mouths of a feathered serpent<\/a>. The friezes above each of these had whimsical images of tadpoles<\/a>. There were so many things to see in this area I lost track! Unfortunately it remained cloudy all morning so photography was difficult.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>A wide raised road or Sacbe<\/em><\/strong><\/a> leads from this area 1000ft to the Sacred Cenote<\/strong><\/a>. The road passes through a perimeter wall<\/a> that once guarded the temple area. This area was lined with local vendors standing shoulder to shoulder in hopes of making a sale. There’s not much to see now, but in its day the Cenote was used to sacrifice to the rain god Chaac<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The Grand Ball Court<\/strong><\/a> is truly enormous, and one wonders whether it was a ritual center rather than a venue for actual competition<\/em><\/a> (the rings are thirty feet high!). On the sidelines are carvings of the players<\/a>, one of which can be seen holding a knife and a severed head<\/a>! The small Temple of the Bearded Man<\/strong><\/a> is in the north end zone. The Upper Temple of the Jaguar<\/strong><\/a> overlooks the southern end.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>I’ll conclude with a description of The Observatory<\/strong><\/a> and its companions. (It is also known as the Caracol or snail because of its spiral stairs.) This was a functioning astronomical observatory with small apertures aligned to the movements of the Sun, Moon and the planet Venus. (It was very frustrating not to have better access!) It sits on a platform with huge overhanging walls<\/a>. We also had a great view at night<\/a> from the hotel bar. (I’m not kidding!)<\/p>\n

Across a small lawn were two small Puuc style buildings with elaborate carvings. One known as The Church<\/strong><\/a> had a crown of masks. The other<\/a> had a seated figure<\/a> over the door. Beside them were the remains of a ritual bath with walk-in tub<\/a>!<\/p>\n

Coba<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

On our drive to the coast we stopped for a few hours to see the ruins at Coba<\/em><\/strong><\/a>. The site sits between two lakes<\/em><\/a> and is divided up into groupings several kilometers apart. These are much more rustic with less restoration. [photo gallery<\/strong><\/a>] One exception was the Ball Court<\/strong><\/a> which was very small an intimate compared with the others we’d seen. One tall pyramid<\/a> had vultures sunning themselves<\/a> at the top.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>As we walked along the path through the jungle we came upon this cute little round pyramid<\/a>. There were several stelae covered by thatched roofs, but the inscriptions were all but gone. <frown><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>We finally reached the Nohoch Mul Pyramid<\/a> and started to climb. The view from the top<\/a> was of spectacular! There was a small figure in the center of the temple that I believe is the same diving god<\/a> found at Tulum.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tulum<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a>Our final stop was Tulum<\/em><\/strong><\/a> on the east coast. [photo gallery<\/strong><\/a>] While the buildings may be less elaborate, the setting is certainly spectacular. A thick wall surrounds the site on three sides with the ocean on the fourth. The site has its own small cenote<\/a> as a source of fresh water. There is a guard house of sorts just above that looks out on the turquoise Caribbean.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Other small buildings<\/a> spread along the cliffside create dramatic views. It is ironic that the largest temple structure faces inland<\/a> and is therefore unattractive when viewed from the shoreline<\/a>. It is completely closed off to the public. <frown> Here’s a panorama<\/a> (large file).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a>By far the most interesting building is the small Temple of the Frescos<\/strong><\/a>. It has huge humanoid masks<\/a> (see above<\/a>) at each corner and badly eroded carvings of the diving god<\/a> above the doorways. Inside are still visible paintings of various gods<\/a>. (You can just make out the goddess Ixchel<\/em><\/strong><\/a> carrying the infant Chaac<\/strong><\/em><\/a> toward the center of the photograph.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In 2009 I took a short vacation in the Yucatan with my brother and sister-in-law. We started and ended our tip at Merida, which has a delightful old city center to explore. [photo gallery] Uxmal First on our list was Uxmal, my personal favorite! Located in the gently rolling Puuc Hills, it is one of … Continue reading “Mayan Ruins 2009”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1801","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1801"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1801\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1805,"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1801\/revisions\/1805"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redmangrove.org\/rathe.org\/richard\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}