Aztec City of Teotihuacán Mexico

The archaeological ruins of Teotihuacan have awed travelers for millennia. When the Spanish arrived in the late 1500s Teotihuacán was a mere shell of its former self. It's once glorious temples reduced to ruin and the mighty city succumbing to the forces of nature. By the time serious archaeological explorations began in the late 1880s, the pyramids resembled mountains more than man made structures. Today, however, stripped of all the foliage and rebuilt to closely resemble its glory days, the temples, pyramids, and monuments of Teotihuacán offer visitors the chance experience Mexican pre-Hispanic history first hand, and perhaps, to walk in the footsteps of the Aztec gods.

Historical Background

Located 25 miles from Mexico City, Teotihuacán was first settled around 800 BC. Over the next 1,600 years its population would reach 200,000, before mysteriously sliding into decline in the late 700s AD. Although the reason for its decline may never be known, one theory details how a growing population grew frustrated and impatient with the ruling religious class, leading to revolt, widespread destruction, and eventual abandonment.

Visiting the Site

Mexico's largest ancient city can be reached by bus or by car. Buses depart from Terminal Norte every fifteen minutes headed for the "Los Pirámidas." By car take Mexico highway 130D northeast out of the city and follow the signs to the ruins. Once on site there are four must-see areas: the Citadel; the Avenue of the Dead; the Pyramids of the Moon & Sun; and the Palace of Quetzalcoatl. The Citadel is known for its central courtyard estimated to have held 30,000 people, as well as the impressive Temple of Quetzalcoatl with its carved stone serpent heads. Running 2 kilometers (1.24 miles) north from the Citadel is the famed Avenue of the Dead. Lined with numerous temples, palaces, and apartments, this was once the city's heart. Midway down the Avenue sits Teotihuacáns largest structure, the Pyramid of the Sun, named so by the Aztecs because the sun passes along its central axis on the spring equinox, signaling the beginning of the rainy season. Anchoring the northern end of the Avenue is the Pyramid of the Moon, notable for the human sacrifices buried in each of its seven construction phases. The Palace of Quetzalcoatl (a.k.a. Quetzal-Butterfly), now painstakingly rebuilt, gives visitors an idea of what the palace would have looked like during its heyday. Among other things, the palace is known for it richly carved columns featuring the figures of birds with inlaid obsidian eyes.

Teotihuacán is an extraordinary place, not for its construction or artistic merit-for others far surpass it-but rather for its shear size and scope. To walk the Avenue of the Dead and think that the city was once one of the largest and most populated cities in the known world is a moving experience. One can only imagine what the city at its peak would have looked like with bustling markets, crowded streets, and splendid pyramids gleaming crimson red in the southern sun.

Sources: Jorge Angulo, Teotihuacan: City of the Gods; Andrew Coe, Archaeological Mexico: A Guide to Ancient Cities and Sacred Sites; Lonely Planet, 10th ed.

Temple of the Sun

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