Chichen+Itza

**Introduction**

The city of Chichen Itza is a former Mayan-Toltec civilization located on the northern Yucatan peninsula, a short drive outside of present day Cancun. It is among the most widely known ancient architectural sites in the world, and among the current seven ancient wonders of the world.

**History of City**

It is not exactly clear as to when the town was first founded, but best estimates based off of the Mayan calendar and other Mayan text, put its establishment at around 600 AD. In the towns earliest days it is believed that it was used by the Maya for ceremonial purposes. Throughout the first four hundred years of the town’s existence it appears as if the Maya sporadically lived there, with possible lengthy terms of abandonment. Around 1000 AD it is believed that the Toltec, of central Mexico, moved into the city and began coexisting with the Maya who were living there. The Toltec’s were believed to have been led to Chichen Itza by the Toltec king Kukulcan, otherwise known as Quetzalcoatl, who is believed to have brought Toltec beliefs to the town. At the time of his arrival the Maya had established a zone of Chichen Itza known as Chichen Viejo, where they incorporated a style of architecture, today known as Puuc architecture. After the Toltec’s arrival, a blended architecture known as Maya-Yucatec, was incorporated and can be seen in the cities most prominent buildings including the Temple of Kukulcan, the Caracol, the Ball Court, Jaguar Temple, and the Temple of the Warriors. Around 1200 AD it appears that a war broke out in the city, which led most to abandon the city. Chichen Itza was again settled in 1220 AD by the Itza people, but only for a short time as it was soon abandoned. In the 1500’s, Spanish explorer Francisco de Montejo took over the city for a brief period, but was run out by Mayan’s living in the area. From this point on it appears as if the city was never again formerly ruled but rather sporadically lived in or visited by locals.

**Important Buildings**

**Temple of Kukulcan** Located at the center of the city of Chichen Itza, is found the Temple of Kukulcan. The Temple of Kukulcan, is better know as El Castillo or the castle, after the Spanish gave it this name when they first discovered the city in the early fifteen hundreds. This structure is a square pyramid which reaches 24 meters high at its top platform. The pyramid consists of four identical staircases located on each of the four sides. Each of these four staircases is made up of 91 steps, which when added together adds to the number of days in the year.

The temple got its original name, Kukulcan after the Toltecs arrived. When the Toltecs came they brought their religious beliefs which included the worship of a serpent named Quetzalcoatl. This serpent can be found incorporated into the staircases of the pyramid.

One very unique feature of the structure, which was derived from the Maya's love afair of astrology, can be seen during the spring and fall equinox. At this time a shadow formed by the northeast corner of the pyramid is cast onto the northern staircase. From below it appears as if a serpent is slithering down the staircase and ending at the heads of Kukulcan.

Another interesting aspect of the pyramid deals with a unique sound which can be heard echoing off of the pyramids steps when a person standing at the base claps their hands. In 1998 an acoustics engineer named David Ludman found this peculiar sound interesting enough to put together a research team involving the Mexican Institute of Acoustics. Through their work, they were able to determine that the sound they were hearing was that of the Quetzal bird. The importance of this is that the Mayan culture highly valued the feathers of the Quetzal bird, which is native to the region.

**Ball Court** The ball court, better referred to as the Great Ball Court is the largest such court in Mesoamerica, measuring 525 long by 224 feet wide. The court was used for the playing of the Mesoamerican ballgame, which was a widely played game in the Americas at the time. Surrounding the court on three sides are three temples, which are believed to have been used for viewing of matches. It is believed that for the Maya, the Mesoamerican ballgame was a game of human sacrifice. The thinking is that the captian of the winning team would present himself to the loosing teams captian for decapitation.

** Annotated Bibliography ** [1] "Ancient Observatories: Chichén Itzá." //Exploratorium: the Museum of Science, Art and Human Perception//. Web. 11 Apr. 2011. . This site provides information on the history of the Mayan people, the history of the establishment of the city of Chichen Itza, and a description of how the city fell. It also provides a brief discussion of Mayan mythology.

[2] "American Egypt / Ancient Cities of the Maya." //American Egypt / All about Chichen Itza and Mexico's Maya Yucatan//. Web. 8 Apr. 2011. . Provides information about the main cenote, called Cenote Sagrado, located in the city of Chichen Itza, and discusses the importance it played to the Maya.

[3] Bce, 300. "Mesoamerican Ballgame." //Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia//. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. . Discusses the Mesoamerican ballgame, which was played at the city of Chichen Itza.

[4] "Chichen Features." //Mesoweb//. Web. 12 Apr. 2011. . Presents an overview of the history of the city of Chichen Itza, also describes the archaeological work done there.

[5] //Chichen Itza//. Web. 10 Apr. 2011. . This website provides detailed explanations of all of the buildings located in the city of Chichen Itza.

[6] "Chichen Itza Archaeologists - Hacienda Chichen Mayan Archaeological Headquarter - Yucatan Mexico." //Chichen Itza Hotels and Yucatan Haciendas: Hacienda Chichen Resort and Yaxkin Spa - Best Mayan Eco-Spa Destination, Yucatan, Mexico.// Web. 11 Apr. 2011. . This page discusses the Hacienda Chichen, which was a living quarters used by the many archeologists who were responsible for discovering the city of Chichen Itza.

[7] "Chichen Itza Pyramid." //Hispanic Culture Online Resource | Latino Culture//. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. . Provides a discussion of the pyramid at Chichen Itza, better known as the Temple of Kukulcan.

[8] "Chichen Itza - Mayan Ruins in Mexico - Chichen Itza Mexico." //Online Travel Guides of Travel Destinations - Las Vegas, Caribbean, Hawaii and Machu Picchu//. Web. 6 Apr. 2011. . This website provides an overview of the city of Chichen Itza from the prospective of the modern day tourist.

[9] "Chichen Itza - New World Encyclopedia." //Info:Main Page - New World Encyclopedia//. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. . This encyclopedia website provides a detailed overview covering all aspects of the Mayan city.

[10] "Chichen Itza - Sacred Well (Cenote), Chichen Itza, Mexico." //About Archaeology - The Study of Human History//. Web. 8 Apr. 2011. . This article provides a description of the cenote located in the city of Chichen Itza, and discusses how it was used for sacrificial purposes.

[11] Digital image. //New 7 Wonders Of The World//. Web. 10 Apr. 2011. []. This is an image of the ball court at Chichen Itza.

[12] "FREE Maya Calendar Information - Maya World Studies Center." //The Maya Calendar by the Maya World Studies Center in Yucatan Mexico//. Web. 7 Apr. 2011. . Provides an overview of the Mayan calendar.

[13] Lubman, David. "An archaeological study of chirped echo from the Mayan pyramid of Kukulkan at Chichen Itza." //Orange County Regional Chapter - Acoustical Society of America (*)//. Web. 8 Apr. 2011. . This article represents a summary of a paper which was given in October of 1998. It discusses the acoustic features of the Pyramid of Kukulkan at Chichen Itza. It discusses the connection between the echo heard when clapping near the Pyramids base and the Quetzal bird, which the Mayan people find sacred.

[14] "Mayan Pyramids of Chichen Itza." //Lost Civilizations//. Web. 4 Apr. 2011. . This page includes numerous pictures of the Mayan city along with some brief descriptions of some buildings.

[15] Odenwald, Sten. "Technology Through Time Issue #72: Ancient Astronomical Alignments." //Sun-Earth Day 2011//. Web. 10 Apr. 2011. . This article provides an overview of ancient buildings around the world and how they are astronomically related. For some of the most prominent ancient locations it provides a description of the solar alignments which occur.

[16] "Peabody Museum Collections Online." //Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology//. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. . This site includes a large collection of photos taken from the city of Chichen Itza.

[17] "Pre-Hispanic City of Chichen-Itza." //UNESCO World Heritage Centre//. Web. 12 Apr. 2011. . The site provides both a brief overview of the Mayan city, along with a detailed description of the city’s history. Along with this, there are also available maps, a gallery of photographs, and a short video describing some highlights of the city.

[18] "The Ball Court At Chichen Itza." //Mysterious Places: Explore Sacred Sites and Ancient Civilizations//. Web. 10 Apr. 2011. <http://www.mysteriousplaces.com/mayan/BallCourt.html>. Provides pictures and description of the Ball court at Chichen Itza.

[19] "The Great City - Science Museum of Minnesota." //Science Museum of Minnesota - Minnesota's Favorite Museum//. Web. 8 Apr. 2011. <http://www.smm.org/sln/ma/grtcity.html>. This website provides a brief description of the different types of architecture which are present at Chichen Itza.

[20] Trivedi, Bijal P. "Was Maya Pyramid Designed to Chirp Like a Bird?" //Daily Nature and Science News and Headlines | National Geographic News//. Web. 9 Apr. 2011. <http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/12/1206_021206_TVMayanTemple.html>. This article discusses the peculiar acoustic features of the Temple of Kukulcan, located in the city of Chichen Itza. It talks about a researches work into the subject and how it was determined that the echo heard when clapping near the pyramid is identical to the chirp of the Quetzal bird, which was highly valued by the Maya people.

[21] //YouTube - Lost Temples: Mayan Pyramids of Chichen Itza//. //YouTube - Broadcast Yourself.// Web. 7 Apr. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyvw6G9Max0>. Discusses a brief history of the various people which inhabited the Mayan city of Chichen Itza.