One of the New Seven Wonders of the World, Chichen Itza in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula is an impressive, mostly intact pre-Columbian city. Built by the Mayans beginning around the 5th century AD, Chichen Itza was an important center in the Mayan culture. But the site was abandoned and swallowed by the jungle, as shown in this colorized photograph, and the Mayan population declined.
The Kukulcán Temple photograph by Teobert Maler 1892 - Wikipedia-Colorized
Rediscovered in the 1840s and restored to its former glory, Chichen Itza’s grand pyramid, ball court, and other structures give us insight into the Mayans and the rich history of Mexico.
The History of Chichen Itza
A photograph of Chichen Itza in 1859–1860 by Désiré Charnay before vegetation was removed - Wikipedia-Colorized
The city of Chichen Itza was built near a large cenote which provided water for the people of the city. The Mayan people lived in the region from as far back as the 5th century. The structures at the site were built in stages. Different groups added to the complex through the centuries. Archaeologists can see evidence that some structures are much older than others and they differ slightly in architectural style. By the 10th century AD, members of the Toltec people had interactions with the Mayans and may have influenced some of the construction, like the Wall of Skulls and the Temple of the Jaguar, as well as the Thousand Columns.
El Castillo
Chacmool statue from the Chichen Itza site - wikipedia-Colorized
Towering above the rest of the Chichen Itza is El Castillo, formerly known as the Temple of Kukulkan, another name for Quetzalcoatl. A step pyramid, El Castillo contains important astronomical information that may have helped the ancient people track the seasons. On each of the four sides of the pyramid, there are 91 steps. There is one last step at the top. In total, that makes 365 steps, the same number of steps as days in the solar year. The 91 steps on each side of the pyramid represent the number of days between each point of the solar cycle, from the spring equinox, to the summer solstice, to the autumnal equinox, to the winter solstice. On the spring and autumn equinoxes, the setting sun casts a shadow down the steps of the pyramid that gives the illusion of a snake slithering down the building.
The Decline of Chichen Itza
Alfred Maudslay at Chichen Itza, Mexico, 1900
It appears that, after the 13th century, all major construction at Chichen Itza stopped. The population of the city rapidly declined. One reason could have been a drought that decreased the drinking water in the nearby cenote. It could also have been caused by war or disease. Whatever the cause, the population of Mayan living at Chichen Itza plummeted. By 1440 AD, the city was all but abandoned. The site was quickly overgrown with vegetation, hiding the ruins from view.
A Rediscovery
Photo of the Northern stairwell 1880. The pyramid was built during the eleventh to thirteenth centuries directly upon the multiple foundations of previous temples. Source: Wikipedia
It is easy to say that Chichen Itza was “discovered” in 1841, but that’s not entirely true. Indigenous people of the Yucatan Peninsula always knew that the ruins were there. However, the first white Europeans to write about the ruins at Chichen Itza were John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood. Stephens had reportedly been shown the ruins by locals during previous expeditions, but he did not write about it until 1841. He and Catherwood kept a journal of their travels through the Yucatan Peninsula which they published in a book called Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan. The book featured Catherwood’s drawings of El Castillo and other monuments at the location. This book, and the accompanying illustrations, sparked the interest of explorers around the world. They descended on the Yucatan with shovels and cameras.
Old Photos of Chichen Itza
Wikipedia - The Castillo looking southeast. Chichen Itza Yucatan Mexico-Colorized
Beginning in the 1860, photographers journeyed to Chichen Itza to snap pictures of the ruins. One of these was Desire Charnay. He took a series of famous photos of the vegetation covered ruins which he published in his 1863 book, Cites et Ruines Americicaines. Restoration and excavation of the structures at Chichen Itza began in the 1870s and 1880s. Visitors to the ruins documented the process of peeling back the overgrowth and revealing the extent of the ancient Mayan city.
Edward Herbert Thompson and the Peabody Museum of Harvard University
Edward Herbert Thompson dredged the cenote for artifacts. (alchertron.com)
Edward Herbert Thompson was the U.S. Consul to the Yucatan region. In 1894, he purchased the land on which the ruins stand. He spent the next three decades exploring and excavating the ruins and made a number of important discoveries. The artifacts he unearthed he shipped to the U.S. to the Peabody Museum, located on the campus of Harvard University. Then, in 1926, Mexican government filed theft charges against Thompson. They claimed that he stole artifacts from the Mexican people and smuggled them out of the country. Thompson was in the U.S. when the charges were filed against him, and he never returned to the Yucatan.
Tourism at Chichen Itza
Teobert Maler's original black and white photograph of El Castillo from 1892. Source: Wikipedia
Today, Chichen Itza is owned by the state of Yucatan. It is one of Mexico’s most popular historical sites and receive roughly two million visitors annually. Although tourists have visited the site for the last century, it has grown in popularity thanks to its location. It is a short bus ride from the resort city of Cancun and the cruise ship port in nearby Progresso. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and, more recently, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
