Teotihuacan

TEOTIHUACAN

THERE IS A BOLD CLAIM NESTLED IN THE NAME OF ONE OF MEXICO'S MOST VISITED AND SIGNIFICANT ANCIENT ATTRACTIONS – WELCOME TO 'THE PLACE WHERE THE GODS WERE CREATED'.

Anywhere else calling itself "the place where gods are created could be quickly written off as hyperbole. But one glimpse at the towering monuments that define Teotihuacan, located in the basin of Central Mexico about 50 kilometres (30 miles) northeast of the capital, can have a gobsmacked visitor believing anything.

First settled in the second century BC, the area grew to become one of the most ambitious urban developments of the ancient world. In a frenzy of construction between the 1st and 7th centuries AD, Teotihuacan became one of the largest cities in the Americas, possibly home to as many as 200,000 people, with the spectacular Pyramids of the Sun and Moon, and the Temple of Quetzalcoatl as centrepieces.

These extraordinary structures still exist in some form today, and are as imposing and impressive as ever. The Pyramid of the Sun sits on an area roughly 225 metres square – larger than a Manhattan city block – and rises 75 metres into the Mexican sky, with a volume of more than one million cubic metres. The Aztecs, who stumbled upon the mysteriously abandoned Teotihuacan in the 14th century and gave it its name, believed the gods created the sun itself in the giant pyramid they named after it.

Visitors today can scale its summit and then cast their gaze over a remarkable feat of urban planning from more than 1,300 years ago. This was the central hub of all of Mesoamerica during its Golden Age. When UNESCO added the city on its World Heritage List in 1987, the organisation lauded “one of the most powerful cultural centres in Mesoamerica” whose “cultural and artistic influence extended throughout the region and beyond”.

This reverence is not misplaced. Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of exceptionally sophisticated mathematical and engineering prowess in the architects of ancient Teotihuacan, as well as clear astronomical knowledge.

The pyramids along the central thoroughfare, known as the Avenue of the Dead, are spaced in alignment with planets in the solar system, while the sun passes directly above the Pyramid of the Sun at noon on the spring equinox. It brings sun worshippers of the modern era to one of the most sacred sites of their Aztec brethren.

Most people these days visit Teotihuacan on a day trip from Mexico City and should prepare for a full itinerary. Visitors can enter or climb many of the ancient structures located in the city, and learn the full history and significance from any number of experienced guides.

At one end of the Avenue of the Dead lies La Ciudadela (the citadel), a sunken square that once acted as a meeting place and auditorium for thousands of worshippers and was the beating heart of the ancient city. Around it stood the houses of the city’s most prominent figures, and behind its altar looms the Quetzalcoatl temple, a completely intact pyramid to the so-called “feathered serpent”. On its façade are huge sculptures both of the eponymous deity and the rain god Tlaloc.

The Avenue of the Dead is around one-and-a-half miles long and also features some unique examples of pre-Hispanic housing and art, as well as both the Sun and Moon pyramids. The latter, at the thoroughfare’s northern end, is slightly smaller than its counterpart but is built on higher ground to give the impression of being on the same level.

The town museum, close to the Sun Pyramid and surrounded by a botanical garden, is also a must visit to ensure you do not leave this enchanting place without fully understanding how important it is.