Chichen Itza

This chapter proposes a historical reconstruction of Chichen Itza during the Terminal Classic period that combines recent ceramic and archaeological data with contemporary epigraphic studies. Through this reconstruction, we argue that we can clarify the understanding of the site’s internal dynamics and of the chronological relationship between its Maya or “Puuc” and Internationalstyle constructions, as well as of the site’s overall impact on northern Yucatan

Chichen Itza is one of the best-known yet most enigmatic cities of the ancient Maya. Important scholarly debates still surround its basic chronology and the people who built and lived in the city. These academic discussions are complemented by a colorful background of popular speculation. Early explorers, such as Augustus Le Plongeon, merged the two and sometimes created wild tales involving lost continents, unrequited love, sacrificial virgins, and ancient Egypt. These narratives still fuel contemporary interest in Chichen Itza, as do the more recently developed tenets of New Age spirituality. Although there is no reason to think that Chichen Itza was built by aliens or Queen Moo of Atlantis, the city remains a focus of both scholarly and popular interest. In this introductory chapter, we hope to lift—or at least peek under— the veil of confusion surrounding Chichen Itza. Because we are archaeologists, we concentrate on the history of archaeological exploration and the interpretation of colonial and ancient texts concerning the site. Our goal here is to provide a background to " how we know what we know " about Chichen Itza and to hint at why we still do not know so many important things about this ancient Maya city.

This book is a scholarly collection of essays on contemporary perspectives regarding the nature and significance of the sacred in the built environment. Recognized experts in the fields of architecture, urbanism, landscape architecture, and religious studies bring unique perspectives to a range of topics and examples. The book’s primary argument is that even though the post-modern condition has transgressed, degraded or superseded shared belief systems and symbolic languages, the experience, significance and meaning of the built environment retains a certain kind of veracity, potency and latent receptivity. Even though the authors approach the subject from a range of disciplines and theoretical positions, all share interests in the need to rediscover, redefine or reclaim the sacred in everyday experience, scholarly analysis, and design.

Objectives: The ancient city of Chichén Itzá in the northern Yucatán of Mexico was one of the most important in the Maya area, but its origins and history are poorly understood. A major question concerns the origins of the peoples who founded and later expanded the ancient city. Hundreds of people were ritually executed and their bodies thrown into the waters of the Sacred Cenote at Chichén. Materials and methods: In this study, we use strontium and oxygen isotopes to study the place of origin of a large sample of these individuals. Isotopes are deposited in human tooth enamel. Enamel forms during the first years of life, remains largely unchanged long past death, and can provide a signature of the place of birth. If the isotope ratios in enamel are different from the place of death, the individual must have moved during his/her lifetime. Results: Comparison of our results from the cenote with information on isotope ratios across the Maya region and elsewhere suggests that the individuals in the cenote came from a number of different parts of Mexico and possibly beyond. Discussion: It is not known if all of the sacrificial victims resided in Chichén Itzá, but their suggested origins likely reflect patterns of population movement and social networks that existed between Chichén Itzá and both neighboring and distant regions.

Castillo Viejo or the Castillo at Old Chichen lies within the Principal Group of the Southwest, 1.3 k south of the Castillo or the site center, and contains never-before published hieroglyphic inscriptions, ten short texts that are parallel in format, syntax, and content. This paper, originally published at <mesoweb.com/pari/journal/archive/PARI0902.pdf> summarizes the findings.

We use ceramic and obsidian data from the ancient Maya port site of Vista Alegre to discuss long-distance exchange during the Terminal Classic (c. AD 850-1100) period. This is a time often associated with increased international trade relations and the growth of Chichen Itza as a dominant regional power in the northern Maya lowlands. Critical to the increased volume of international trade were the merchants who transported goods along the coast of Yucatan in large trading canoes. By combining a macroscopic assessment of the ceramics with visual, XRF, and INAA analyses of the obsidian artifacts, we gain insight into the various socioeconomic forces at work moving goods around the Peninsula. Given the paucity of Terminal Classic settlement in the interior Yalahau region, Vista Alegre appears to be an isolated site during this period, approximately 40 km from the nearest coastal neighbor. This allows us to focus on coastal exchange as the sole means by which goods arrived at the site. Our preliminary data contribute to the growing literature on the role market economies played in the Maya area, and the increased opportunities this afforded coastal peoples as circum-peninsular trade became more common through time. En este trabajo utilizamos información sobre la cerámica y la obsidiana del antiguo puerto Maya de Vista Alegre, Quintana Roo, México, para discutir el intercambio a larga distancia durante el periodo Clásico terminal (ca. 850-1100 dC). Dicho periodo es frecuentemente asociado con el incremento de las relaciones comerciales internacionales y el crecimiento de Chichén Itzá como centro regional dominante en las tierras bajas Mayas del norte. Los comerciantes que transportaban bienes a lo largo de la costa de Yucatán en grandes canoas comerciales fueron fundamentales para el aumento del volumen del comercio internacional. Combinando la examinación macroscópica de la cerámica con el estudio visual, por fluorescencia de rayos X y por análisis instrumental de activación neutrónica (XRF e INAA, respectivamente, por sus siglas en inglés) de los artefactos de obsidiana, se obtuvo información sobre las diversas fuerzas socio-económicas involucradas en el transporte de mercancías alrededor de la península. Dada la escasez de asentamientos del Clásico terminal en el interior de la región de Yalahau, Vista Alegre parece haber sido un sitio aislado durante este periodo, localizado a aproximadamente 40 km del asentamiento costero más cercano. Esto permite enfocarnos en el intercambio costero como el único medio por el cual las mercancías llegaron al sitio. La información preliminar aquí presentada contribuye al creciente conjunto de investigaciones sobre el papel que desempeñaron las economías de mercado en el área Maya y las mayores oportunidades que esto brindó a los pueblos costeros.