.jpg) This is just another reason why Chichen Itza, a place with a personality and life of its own, unique in the Maya universe, is now one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
The following list describes the most important and popular attractions of Chichen Itza. However, we must say that this is not a definitive guide, since there are many more buildings to admire in this city that once was the most important ceremonial and religious center of the Maya world.
Temple of Kukulcan
.jpg) Commonly called ''El Castillo'' (The Castle), the Temple of Kukulcán is undoubtedly the most representative building of all Chichen Itza. It is said that its original construction started around the 300 and 450 A.D. and later continued with the original temple being used as the base for a larger temple, the one you can visit today.
Before the Mexican government banned access to the temples, travelers who did not suffer from claustrophobia could enter the inner chamber of the temple where, after going up some stairs then through a small tunnel, a beautiful jaguar-shaped stone throne is located. According to archeologists, this throne was used by the sovereign of the city when presiding over ceremonies. The jaguar indicates power, and was a sacred animal for the Maya.
Each of the temples four sides has its own stairway. When counting the 91 existing steps in each face, plus a central step that is on top of the building, you get 365 steps, the exact number of days in a year. This and many more details indicate the precision of the Maya with regards to the study of the sun, the moon, the planets and the stars.
Kukulcan's descent
.jpg) Twice a year, on March 21st and September 23rd, the Temple of Kukulcan is both the stage and the protagonist of its own amazing show, because during these days, which are the spring and autumn equinoxes (dates when day and night last exactly the same time), a shadow resembling a snake slithering down the stairs can be seen on the northern side of El Castillo.
The so called "snake" descends to the very bottom of the temple, finally illuminating two stone serpent heads. The projection on El Castillo forms seven isosceles triangles, and according to the ancient Maya, it's Kukulcan himself who descends from top of the building to fertilize the land.
Summer Solstice
The longest day of the year, or summer solstice, is when the sun reaches its northernmost point and marks the exact moment of the seasonal change from spring to summer. If you ever visit Chichen Itza on June 22nd, you can see the northern side of the Temple of Kukulcan fully illuminated by the sun's rays, whereas the Southern and the Westerly sides remain shaded by the temple itself. Seen from the sky, it's as if the sun has divided the temple in half, with a perfect diagonal cut.
The great ball court
.jpg) Forming a sort of capital "H", the Great Ball Court at Chichen Itza is 525 feet long and 246 feet wide. The participants would play below on the ground, while on the 39 feet high walls were the spectators.
At the east end of the Ball Court you'll find the building known as the ''Temple of the Jaguars'', whereas at the opposite end the ''Temple of the Tigers'' is located.
.jpg) Each one of these constructions features a kind of theater box that unlike other seats was covered with a roof. It is thought that the rulers of Chichen Itza observed the game from these two places in the ball court, which were built considering acoustics, since sound waves are transmitted clearly from one theater box to the other, traveling 160 meters just by speaking a little louder than usual.
The rubber ball used to play this game had to go through any of the two stone rings for each team to score. Each stone ring is 23 feet high, in a vertical position with intertwined serpents carved on both sides, illustrating the never ending struggle and harmony of life and death.
''El Caracol'' Maya observatory
.jpg) This building was named ''El Caracol'' because its interior spiral staircase resembles a snails shell. This building functioned as a place for rituals, but above all it was an observatory. Despite the fact that the observation chamber has collapsed almost completely, the rest of the rooms and inscriptions carved on the building lead archeologists to believe that keeping track of solstices, equinoxes and the movement of stars was its main purpose.
If the Mayans wanted to know the exact moment for sowing or harvesting their crops, they would go to the observatory, where Maya scientists performed their studies on the position of the moon, the sun and other planets. When the time was right, the Maya held important rituals, depending on how important the crop was for them and for all pre-Columbian civilization.
The Sacred Cenote
The natural wells or cenotes (from the Maya word dzonot, which means hole or well) are fresh water deposits common all over the Yucatan Peninsula. Cenotes are formed through water filtration on the stone walls; sometimes they are located in caverns and others like Chichen Itza's Sacred Cenote, are in open ground; this one has an impressive diameter of 213 feet and is 115 feet deep.
 Ever since the discovery and excavation of this overwhelming Mayan city began decades ago, a lot has been said about human sacrifices that were supposed to have taken place in the Sacred Cenote. The Maya considered cenotes as a means of communication with Chac, deity of the water and rain and it was he who received valuable offerings thrown from the edge of the cenote, such as luxurious textiles and hand woven baskets, as well as copper (and even gold) ornaments and jewelry encrusted with beautiful gems, such as jade and amber.
On the other hand, between 1904 and 1907, human remains displaying what seemed like marks of physical violence were discovered. This evidence allows the experts to assume that prisoners or the like were occasionally offered to honor the rain god Chac. |
