Teotihuacan – the abandoned City of the Gods is located 50 km from Mexico City. The municipality of San Juan Teotihuacan. The history of the City of Gods began in the second century. Due to the eruption of the volcano, the citizens of Cuicuilco left the city and moved to Teotihuacan, making it a regional center. At the head of the city were tough rulers who established a clear way of life. Social life, the influence on the minds of people were entrusted to the clergy who had knowledge of astronomy.
Much attention was drawn to religion, altars were found in the poorest homes. The history of civilization Teotihuacan left far behind the heyday of ancient Rome. The rulers made the city an object of pilgrimage, they came here to worship the deities, to find work, to conclude trade deals, to take part in mystical holidays and religious ceremonies. In the middle of VII century. Teotihuacan was abandoned. The Indians, who came much later, found only ruins.
The main hypothesis of the death of the City of Gods is considered an extraterrestrial invasion. Another version is a foray of another hostile tribe with the aim of ruining and conquering the city. Sacred statues were broken or disfigured, tombs and caches of gifts were plundered. Since no evidence of violence was found, none of the versions is confirmed. That’s about as he looked to destruction.
The City of the Gods is astounded by the well-thought-out plan: the correctness of streets intersecting at an angle of 900 with the central avenue, in the middle of which is located the Citadel with the pyramid of Quetzalcoatl and the adjacent Southern and Northern palaces. The pyramid of Quetzalcoatl is also called the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent. She received this name because of the numerous number of dragon heads carved out of stone. The heads of the dragons are present on all the steps, framing on both sides a ladder along which you can climb to the top of the pyramid.
In 2003, an underground tunnel was discovered under the pyramid of Quetzalcoatl. It passes at a depth of 14 meters, in length more than 100 meters. By assumption the tunnel connects several larger galleries. One of the oldest and main buildings of Teotihuacan are the Pyramids of the Moon and the Sun, the height of the Pyramid of the Moon is 42 meters.
In the XX century, Leopoldo Batres first discovered and explored the Pyramid of the Sun. And, in 1992-1993, under the leadership of the National Institute of Anthropology and the head Edward Matos Moktesuma, a thorough excavation was carried out. Constructed, presumably, in 150, the Pyramid of the Sun is a five-storey structure of cobble, earth and clay with a flat roof, on which the temple was once located. The dimensions of the colossus are striking: the length of the sides of the base is 217,211,209 and 207 meters, the height is 64.5 meters, and the total volume is 993,000 m3.
Through the whole Teotihuacan passes the Road of the Dead. According to legend, it was intended for religious processions of pilgrims. Now it is a center of commerce where locals sell souvenirs to tourists.
