Teotihuacan

1. Teotihuacan • By: Kyana Wilson

2. Location • Basin of Mexico • Approximately twenty five miles northeast of Mexico City.

3. Creation • Scholars dispute the fact of which civilization, the Totonac or the Toltec, was the founded and builder of the Teotihuacan. There are civilizations that have influenced the style in which the stature was decorated and furnished, those are:the Maya, the Mixtec, the Zapotec, and of course the Olmec which are considered to be the “mother of civilization”

4. Culture ( Language & Religion ) • Archaeological evidence suggests that Teotihuacan was a multi-ethnic city. The languages of the multiple civilizations began to blend. This blended language became that of the mesoamericans. Not only was their language blended, but the religion that they called their own deprived from their ancestors.

5. Culture cont. (Religion cont.) • They worshiped a multitude of gods. Those of which hold many similar traits to the gods of the civilizations before them. Politics went hand in hand with religion. Politicians were religious leaders, just as religious leaders were politicians • They practice human sacrifice. Scholars believe that the people offered human sacrifices as part of a dedication when buildings were expanded or constructed. The victims were enemy warriors captured in battle and the ritual sacrifice was preformed to ensure the city could prosper. Some men were decapitated, some had their hearts removed, others were killed by being hit several times over the head, and some were buried alive. • Animals that were considered sacred and represented mythical powers were also buried alive, imprisoned in cages, some are: cougars, wolves, eagles, falcons, owls, and even venomous snakes.

6. Archaeological site • Huge ruins of Teotihuacan was never lost. From the ruins comes the knowlegde that during Aztec times, the city was a place of pilgrimage that identified with the myth of Tollan, the place where the sun was created. • The Pyramid of the Sun was restored for Mexican Independence on 1910. • Excvations have occured at Teotihuacan ever since the early ninteenth century. On 1971 a tunnel and cave syatem was discovered in the Pyramid of Sun. The tunnel was manmade, contray to what early scholars may have infered.

7. Threat of Development • The archaeological park of Teotihuacan is under threat from developmental pressures. In 2004, the governor of Mexico state, gave permission for Wal-Mart to build a large store in the third archaeological zone of the park. Priceless artifacts were uncovered during store construction and were reportedly trucked off to a local dump, then the workers were fired when they revealed this little detail to the press. More recently, Teotihuacan has become the center of controversy over Resplandor Teotihuacano, a proposed massive light and sound spectacular, which, includes large metallic structures, 2,500 lights and three kilometers of cables. The matter is still unreasolved.

8. Collapse • Scholars had thought that sometime during the 7th or 8th centuries, invaders attacked the city, sacking and burning it. More recent evidence, however, seems to indicate that the burning was limited to the structures and dwellings associated primarily with the elite class. • Evidence for population decline beginning around the 6th century lends some support to the internal hypothesis. The decline of Teotihucán has been correlated to lengthy droughts related to climate changes. This theory of ecological decline is supported by archaeological remains that show a rise in the percentage of juvenile skeletons with evidence of malnutrition.