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Plaza of the Columns Complex http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/home/ Archaeological Project, Teotihuacan, Mexico Tue, 20 Feb 2024 20:40:56 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/cropped-WB_beige-32x32.png Plaza of the Columns Complex http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/home/ 32 32 220200212 The Creation of Royalty in “Out of Eurasia” civilizations: Exploring the mechanism of the Emergence of Transcendent Power http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/the-creation-of-royalty-in-out-of-eurasia-civilizations-exploring-the-mechanism-of-the-emergence-of-transcendent-power/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/the-creation-of-royalty-in-out-of-eurasia-civilizations-exploring-the-mechanism-of-the-emergence-of-transcendent-power/#respond Wed, 28 Jun 2023 18:50:07 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=26811 Here is the poster of the conference “The Creation of Royalty in “Out of Eurasia” civilizations: Exploring the mechanism of the Emergence of Transcendent Power” that will take place from June 30th to July 2nd at the Meiji University. Some members of the project will be participating.

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Here is the poster of the conference “The Creation of Royalty in “Out of Eurasia” civilizations: Exploring the mechanism of the Emergence of Transcendent Power” that will take place from June 30th to July 2nd at the Meiji University. Some members of the project will be participating.

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Ancient Mexico: Maya, Aztec and Teotihuacan http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/ancient-mexico-maya-aztec-and-teotihuacan/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/ancient-mexico-maya-aztec-and-teotihuacan/#respond Wed, 28 Jun 2023 18:14:57 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=26800 The exhibition “Ancient Mexico: Maya, Aztec and Teotihuacan” was inaugurated at the Tokio National Museum. This temporary exhibition was managed and curated by Dr. Saburo Sugiyama and will last until September 3rd 2023. Here is the link to the exhibition’s website: https://mexico2023.exhibit.jp/?fbclid=IwAR2GsnSGVDZOcSwy_NwUj5mPYKJCKBbtiyt809sNiWMiQ63HsRYn4kUehjw Here are some videos of the exhibition: Moreover, if you speak Japanese and want to know more about Teotihuacan, you can check out this book written by Dr. Saburo Sugiyama. UPDATE. Don’t miss the opportunity to visit the...

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The exhibition “Ancient Mexico: Maya, Aztec and Teotihuacan” was inaugurated at the Tokio National Museum. This temporary exhibition was managed and curated by Dr. Saburo Sugiyama and will last until September 3rd 2023.

Here is the link to the exhibition’s website: https://mexico2023.exhibit.jp/?fbclid=IwAR2GsnSGVDZOcSwy_NwUj5mPYKJCKBbtiyt809sNiWMiQ63HsRYn4kUehjw

Here are some videos of the exhibition:

Moreover, if you speak Japanese and want to know more about Teotihuacan, you can check out this book written by Dr. Saburo Sugiyama.

UPDATE.
Don’t miss the opportunity to visit the “Ancient Mexico, Maya, Aztec, Teotihuacan” exhibition at the National Museum of Art, Osaka.

February 6–May 6, 2024

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Moving Maya Conference http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/moving-maya-conference/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/moving-maya-conference/#respond Wed, 30 Nov 2022 16:02:07 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=23026 The Moving Maya Conference, organized by Clarissa Cagnato and Juliette Danfakha will take place on December 7th and 8th 2022 at the Musée du quai Branly–Jacques Chirac, Paris, France. Clarissa Cagnato and Nawa Sugiyama will present the paper “The Maya at Teotihuacan: local and foreign plant foods as proxies for interactions during the early 4th century CE”.

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The Moving Maya Conference, organized by Clarissa Cagnato and Juliette Danfakha will take place on December 7th and 8th 2022 at the Musée du quai Branly–Jacques Chirac, Paris, France.

Clarissa Cagnato and Nawa Sugiyama will present the paper “The Maya at Teotihuacan: local and foreign plant foods as proxies for interactions during the early 4th century CE”.

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SYMPOSIUM “PROYECTO TEOTIHUACAN SESENTA AÑOS 1962-2022” http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/symposium-proyecto-teotihuacan-sesenta-anos-1962-2022/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/symposium-proyecto-teotihuacan-sesenta-anos-1962-2022/#respond Mon, 19 Sep 2022 17:07:09 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=22033 The Symposium “Proyecto Teotihuacan Sesenta Años 1962-2022” will take place on September 20th to 23rd 2022 from 16:00 to 19:00 at the Jaime Torres Bodet auditorium in the National Museum of Anthropology. Dr. Nawa Sugiyama will present the paper “Construcción y simbolismo de la Pirámide del Sol de Teotihuacan” on Wednesday, September 21st at 17:30 (CT).

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The Symposium “Proyecto Teotihuacan Sesenta Años 1962-2022” will take place on September 20th to 23rd 2022 from 16:00 to 19:00 at the Jaime Torres Bodet auditorium in the National Museum of Anthropology.

Dr. Nawa Sugiyama will present the paper “Construcción y simbolismo de la Pirámide del Sol de Teotihuacan” on Wednesday, September 21st at 17:30 (CT).

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Society for American Archaeology 87th Annual Meeting http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/society-for-american-archaeology-87th-annual-meeting/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/society-for-american-archaeology-87th-annual-meeting/#respond Wed, 30 Mar 2022 16:38:12 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=18888 Come join us at the Society for American Archaeology’s 2022 conference in Chicago, Illinois. Our team members have prepared the following presentations this year: SATURDAY, APRIL 2 SYMPOSIUM INTERDISCIPLINARY EXPLORATIONS OF URBANISM ,POLITY , AND DAILY L IFE IN TEOTIHUACAN AND BEYOND :S YMPOSIUM IN MEMORY OF GEORGE COWGILLRoom: Lake HuronTime: 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.Chairs: Nawa Sugiyama, Sarah Clayton and Saburo SugiyamaParticipants:9:00 Saburo Sugiyama, Nawa Sugiyama, Kazuhiro Sekiguchi and KuninoriIwashiro—A New Approach for the Cognition of Time, Space, andRulership in the Cosmic City of Teotihuacan9:15 Verónica Ortega Cabrera—Las ofrendas de la Plaza de la LunaTeotihuacán, evidencias del complejo ritual9:30 Emily McClung de Tapia and Laura Beramendi-Orosco—LandscapeFormation/Transformation in the...

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Come join us at the Society for American Archaeology’s 2022 conference in Chicago, Illinois. Our team members have prepared the following presentations this year:

SATURDAY, APRIL 2

SYMPOSIUM INTERDISCIPLINARY EXPLORATIONS OF URBANISM ,
POLITY , AND DAILY L IFE IN TEOTIHUACAN AND BEYOND :
S YMPOSIUM IN MEMORY OF GEORGE COWGILL
Room: Lake Huron
Time: 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Chairs: Nawa Sugiyama, Sarah Clayton and Saburo Sugiyama
Participants:
9:00 Saburo Sugiyama, Nawa Sugiyama, Kazuhiro Sekiguchi and Kuninori
Iwashiro—A New Approach for the Cognition of Time, Space, and
Rulership in the Cosmic City of Teotihuacan
9:15 Verónica Ortega Cabrera—Las ofrendas de la Plaza de la Luna
Teotihuacán, evidencias del complejo ritual
9:30 Emily McClung de Tapia and Laura Beramendi-Orosco—Landscape
Formation/Transformation in the Prehispanic and Colonial Teotihuacan
Valley
9:45 Nawa Sugiyama, Karl Taube, Saburo Sugiyama and Ariel Texis—
Pilgrimage from Center to Periphery: Petrographic Data from Cerro
Patlachique
10:00 Sarah Clayton, Nawa Sugiyama and Karl Taube—Inscribing Clay and
Stone: A Multimedia Study of Writing and Literacy at Teotihuacan
10:15 Jennifer Carballo and David Carballo—A Deep History of Central
Mexican Pottery: Daily Life and Diachronic Patterns
10:30 Destiny Crider—Listening to What the Sherds Tell Us: The Legacy of
George Cowgill on Epiclassic Ceramic Studies
10:45 Michael Smith—George Cowgill’s Approach to Comparative Urbanism
11:00 Alanna Ossa—Gulf Urbanism and the Ballcourt
11:15 Deborah Nichols—Discussant
11:30 Norman Yoffee—Discussant
11:45 Questions and Answers

SYMPOSIUM IN MEMORY OF WENDY ASHMORE: LANDSCAPES OF
MEANING, BIOGRAPHIES OF PLACE, AND ARCHAEOLOGIES OF
COMPASSION, PART 1
Room: Lake Michigan
11:30 Karl Taube, Travis Stanton and Yun Ge—Living Mountains: Cosmology,
World Directions, Centering, and Community in Ancient Mesoamerica
and East Asia

SYMPOSIUM RECENT RESEARCH IN MESOAMERICA
Room: Continental B
3:45    Esther Aguayo, Nawa Sugiyama, Yen-Shin Hsu and Christine France—Teotihuacan and the Missing Staple: An Analysis of Deer Use at Plaza ofthe Columns Complex

See you all there!

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4° Simposio internacional sobre los antiguos mayas en Japón: TEOTIHUACAN y MAYA http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/4-simposio-internacional-sobre-los-antiguos-mayas-en-japon-teotihuacan-y-maya-2/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/4-simposio-internacional-sobre-los-antiguos-mayas-en-japon-teotihuacan-y-maya-2/#respond Sat, 22 Jan 2022 22:24:48 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=17825 This online symposium gathers some of the most renown scientists that investigate Teotihuacan and the Maya area. The schedule is: Sunday, February 13, 2022 18:00-19:00 (CT)Oswaldo Chincilla— NUEVAS PREGUNTAS SOBRE LA INTERACCIÓN ENTRE ESCUINTLA Y TEOTIHUACÁN 19:00-20:00 (CT)Bárbara Arroyo— LAS RELACIONES A LARGA DISTANCIA ENTRE TEOTIHUACAN Y EL ALTIPLANO MAYA 20:15-21:15 (CT)Edwin Román— NUEVOS APORTES Y PERSPECTIVAS AL ESTUDIO DE LA INTERACCIÓN ENTRE TIKAL Y TEOTIHUACÁN 21:15-22:15 (CT)Karl Taube— EL PETÉN, LA CULTURA MAYA Y TEOTIHUACÁN Monday, February 14, 2022...

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This online symposium gathers some of the most renown scientists that investigate Teotihuacan and the Maya area. The schedule is:

Sunday, February 13, 2022

18:00-19:00 (CT)
Oswaldo Chincilla— NUEVAS PREGUNTAS SOBRE LA INTERACCIÓN ENTRE ESCUINTLA Y TEOTIHUACÁN

19:00-20:00 (CT)
Bárbara Arroyo— LAS RELACIONES A LARGA DISTANCIA ENTRE TEOTIHUACAN Y EL ALTIPLANO MAYA

20:15-21:15 (CT)
Edwin Román— NUEVOS APORTES Y PERSPECTIVAS AL ESTUDIO DE LA INTERACCIÓN ENTRE TIKAL Y TEOTIHUACÁN

21:15-22:15 (CT)
Karl Taube— EL PETÉN, LA CULTURA MAYA Y TEOTIHUACÁN

Monday, February 14, 2022

18;00-19:00 (CT)
Saburo Sugiyama— EL GOBIERNO TEOTIHUACANO INTERACTUANDO CON LAS ÉLITES MAYAS: UNA VISTA DESDE LAS ENTRAÑAS DE LA CIUDAD DE TEOTIHUACAN

19:00-20:00 (CT)
Linda R. Manzanilla— LOS DINÁMICOS CENTROS DE BARRIO MULTIÉTNICOS DE TEOTIHUACAN: ORGANIZACIONES EXCLUYENTES EN UN ENTORNO CORPORATIVO

20:15-22:15 (CT)
DISCUSIONES
Moderadores: Shintaro Susuki & Felix Kupprat
Comentarista: Seiichi Nakamura

Don’t miss this opportunity! You can register at the event’s website https://mayaokayama.wixsite.com/4tomayasimpo.

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Teotihuacan in Numbers http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/teotihuacan-in-numbers/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/teotihuacan-in-numbers/#respond Wed, 22 Sep 2021 15:04:37 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=16226 by Yolanda Peláez Castellanos Teotihuacan was one of the most influential cities in Mesoamerica, and descriptions of its grandeur during its occupation from around 100 BCE to 550 CE have been frequently mentioned in literature. At its height, the metropolis had between 75,000 to 125,000 inhabitants and extended over an area of some 20 km2 (7.72 mi2). The biggest building in the city, the Sun Pyramid, stands at 63 m (206.69 ft) tall with each of the four sides of...

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by Yolanda Peláez Castellanos

Teotihuacan was one of the most influential cities in Mesoamerica, and descriptions of its grandeur during its occupation from around 100 BCE to 550 CE have been frequently mentioned in literature. At its height, the metropolis had between 75,000 to 125,000 inhabitants and extended over an area of some 20 km2 (7.72 mi2). The biggest building in the city, the Sun Pyramid, stands at 63 m (206.69 ft) tall with each of the four sides of its base measuring 222 m (730.64 ft).

So, why all these numbers and figures? Well, get ready because the point to this blog entry is to break down these numbers and compare them with other cities, monuments, and areas around the world so you can have a better understanding of (and appreciation for) the impressive dimensions of the Teotihuacan metropolis.

Years of occupation: 100 BCE-550 CE 

Fact: Learning about history is much more interesting than memorizing dates. However, dates are useful for understanding the relative timeframe between which certain events occurred. Teotihuacan was occupied thousands of years ago for centuries. How long ago was that? What was happening in other parts of the world at that time?

The city of Teotihuacan lasted a duration for about 650 years. If we are living in 2021 (21st century), the year 1371 (14th century) was 650 years ago. The Black Death hit Europe, and Dante Alighieri wrote the Divine Comedy during that century. If you think about how much time has passed and how the world has been transformed since then, you will understand that 650 years was a long time, indeed.

According to the chart below, which summarizes the estimated dates for the ceramic phases of Teotihuacan (Cowgill 2015), the city was seemingly occupied from the Patlachique to the Late Xolalpan phases with its collapse beginning around 550 CE (Manzanilla 2018:213-215). If you want to learn more about ceramics and chronology, visit the Relative Chronology section.

PhaseTime period
Patlachique100-1 BCE
Tzacualli1-100 CE
Miccaotli100-170 CE
Early Tlamimilolpa170-250 CE
Late Tlamimilolpa250-350 CE
Early Xolalpan350-450 CE
Late Xolalpan450-550 CE
Metepec550-650 CE

What about Europe? What was going on during that period? The rise of Teotihuacan (Patlachique phase) roughly corresponds with the beginning of the Roman Empire, spanning between 27 BC and 476 CE (Britannica 2021). By the time we reached the 6th century when Teotihuacan was abandoned, the Early Middle Ages were beginning.

Estimated population: ca. 75,000-125,000 inhabitants

If there were any population records taken back in the day, they were not preserved in Teotihuacan. Therefore, we do not know the exact number of people that lived in the city. Archaeologists have, however, calculated an estimated figure. René Millon (1973:44-45)[1] estimated that there were between 75,000 and 125,000 people in Teotihuacan at its height. Comparatively, in 2017 the city of Bruges in Belgium had 118,284 inhabitants (UrbiStat s.f.). This might seem like a small number compared to the biggest cities at present, but think of it like this: Teotihuacan was the biggest city in the Western Hemisphere (Cowgill 2015:1) and the sixth largest city in the world (Millon 1994:17) (Figure 1).

[1] There are other more recent and less generous calculations (e.g., Cowgill 2015), but Millon’s estimate is used here to be consistent with the map in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Largest cities in the world in 500 CE (Taken from Michigan Geographic Alliance n.d.)

Area: ca. 20 km2 (7.72 mi2)

The main area the public can visit in Teotihuacan’s archaeological site is the city’s ceremonial center which stretches across an area of 2.4 km2 (0.92 mi2) (INAH 2021) (Figures 2 and 3). To put this number in perspective, the country of Monaco in Western Europe measures 2 km2 (0.77 mi2) (Viajes NG 2021) and New York’s Central Park measures 3.41 km2 (1.31 mi2) (Britannica 2020). Even further, the area that tourists frequent is only a small percentage (around 12%) of the maximum extent of the city (20 km2 or 7.72 mi2) (Millon 1973:xi), which is comparable to the Republic of Nauru (21 km2 or 8.2 mi2), an island country in Micronesia (Viajes NG 2021).

Figure 2. Teotihuacan’s Archaeological Zone (taken from INAH 2021).
Figure 3. Photos of Teotihuacan’s archaeological site taken from a hot air balloon: a) northern region including the Moon Pyramid and part of the Plaza of the Columns Complex, b) southern region including the Ciudadela and the Great Compound. The border of the archaeological site is shown in orange with contemporary towns located on top of the ancient city.

Dimensions of the Sun Pyramid

Approximate Height: 63 m (206.69 ft); Base: side length: 222 m (728.34 ft); area: 49,248 m2 (530,101.06 ft2) (Sugiyama 1993:112).

While Teotihuacan’s biggest monument is the Sun Pyramid, we actually do not know its original height because it has suffered many natural and human destruction over the centuries and consequently several reconstructions along the way (admittedly not always completely accurate). In the present day, however, the pyramid measures 63 m (206.69 ft) (Sugiyama 1993:112). In comparison, the Mahabodhi Temple in India (55 m or 180.44 ft) (Britannica 2019) and the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy (56.67 m or 185.92 ft) (Leaning Tower of Pisa 2021) are similar in height.

From these numbers, the Sun Pyramid is still more massive than these two monuments. Each of its sides measures 222 m (728.34 ft) with an area of 49,248 m2 (530,101.06 ft2). Have you ever been to a stadium and thought how small you are in comparison to the total space? Well, the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, also known as Millennium Stadium, has a footprint of 40,000 m2 (430,556.42 ft2) (Principality Stadium 2021). A building with a similar area (52,609 m2 or 566,278.56 ft2) is the Windsor Castle (Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead 2021).

When you think of pyramids, surely the famous Egyptian monuments from the Giza Pyramid Complex come to mind. So, how does the Sun Pyramid compare? The following table breaks down the measurements of each of the Giza Pyramids (Britannica 2021) as compared to the Sun Pyramid (Sugiyama 1993:112).

BuildingHeightBase side length
Pyramid of Khufu147 m (481.4 ft)230 m (755.75 ft)
Pyramid of Khafre143 m (471 ft)216 m (707.75 ft)
Pyramid of Menkaure66 m (218 ft)109 m (356.5 ft)
Pyramid of the Sun63 m (206.69 ft)222 m (728.34 ft)

As you can see, the Sun Pyramid is similar in height to the Menkaure Pyramid. Although the Kuru and Khafre pyramids are taller than the Sun Pyramid, their bases are comparatively similar in length (Figure 4) and thus in area as well.

Figure 4. Sun Pyramid compared to some of the buildings mentioned in the text (modified from Cmglee 2016 by Yolanda Peláez).

A Magnificent City

With over six centuries of occupation, Teotihuacan supported an impressively large population across an extensive landscape enhanced by monuments of global proportions. The next time you visit the site, think about what these numbers mean in terms of human ingenuity. Without fortitude and strength, a city would cease to exist. For this reason, Teotihuacan is a paragon of what a city built on a complex and powerful sociopolitical foundation can achieve for centuries on end.

References

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia
2020 “Central Park”. Encyclopedia Britannica. Electronic document, https://www.britannica.com/place/Central-Park-New-York-City, accessed July 30, 2021.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia
2019 “Mahabodhi Temple”. Encyclopedia Britannica. Electronic document, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mahabodhi-Temple, accessed July 30, 2021.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia
2021 “Pyramids of Giza”. Encyclopedia Britannica. Electronic document, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pyramids-of-Giza, accessed 2 August 2021.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia
2021 “Roman Empire”. Encyclopedia Britannica. Electronic document, https://www.britannica.com/place/Roman-Empire, accessed April 13, 2021.

Cmglee
2016 Comparison of Pyramids. Electronic document, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Comparison_of_pyramids.svg, accessed July 30, 2021.

INAH
2021 Zona arqueológica de Teotihuacan. Electronic document,  https://inah.gob.mx/zonas/23-zona-arqueologica-de-teotihuacan, accessed April 12, 2021.

Latham, Richard
2021 “Polo”. Encyclopedia Britannica. Electronic document,  https://www.britannica.com/sports/polo, accessed July 30, 2021.

Leaning Tower of Pisa
2021 Leaning Tower of Pisa. Facts. Electronic document, https://www.towerofpisa.org/leaning-tower-of-pisa-facts/, accessed April 13, 2021.

Manzanilla, Linda
2018 Corporate Societies with Exclusionary Social Components: The Teotihuacan Metropolis. Origini, Prehistory and Protohistory of Ancient Civilizations XLII:211-225.

Michigan Geographic Alliance
s.f. World’s Largest Cities Maps. Electronic document, https://www.cmich.edu/colleges/se/Geography/Michigan%20Geographic%20Alliance/Geography%20Resources/Lesson%20Plans%20by%20Curriculum/Documents/World%27s%20Largest%20Cities%20Maps.pdf, accessed April 13, 2021.

Principality Stadium
2021 Facts and Figures. Electronic document,  https://www.principalitystadium.wales/information/facts-and-figures/, accessed July 30, 2021.

Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
2021 Windsor Castle. Electronic document, https://www.windsor.gov.uk/things-to-do/windsor-castle-p43983, accessed July 30, 2021.

UrbiStat
s.f. Municipality of Burges. Electronic document, https://ugeo.urbistat.com/AdminStat/en/be/demografia/dati-sintesi/bruges/20204703/4, accessed April 12, 2021.

Viajes NG
2021 Los diez países más pequeños del mundo. Electronic document, https://viajes.nationalgeographic.com.es/a/cinco-paises-mas-pequenos-mundo_9351, accessed July 30, 2021.

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Early Images of Teotihuacan in the Modern Era http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/early-images-of-teotihuacan-in-the-modern-era/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/early-images-of-teotihuacan-in-the-modern-era/#respond Wed, 14 Jul 2021 21:53:30 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=15475 by Yolanda Peláez Castellanos Today, it is very easy to photograph and document the world around us. For example, people visiting Teotihuacan can take countless photos and share them on social media immediately; however, in the past, it was much harder to capture and reproduce images. The lithographs, paintings, and photographs from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century demonstrate the many changes that the archaeological zone of Teotihuacan has undergone. Most of the...

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by Yolanda Peláez Castellanos

Today, it is very easy to photograph and document the world around us. For example, people visiting Teotihuacan can take countless photos and share them on social media immediately; however, in the past, it was much harder to capture and reproduce images. The lithographs, paintings, and photographs from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century demonstrate the many changes that the archaeological zone of Teotihuacan has undergone. Most of the images here can be found at INAH’s Media Library.

Developed in the late 18th century, lithography is a printing method which has been used to preserve images that explorers saw. In lithography, an image is engraved on a surface (usually limestone), ink is applied, and then the stone is pressed into paper (Tate 2021). This process allowed for a wider distribution of images of sites such as the Teotihuacan pyramids and its scenery during the 19th century.

Figure 1. Pyramid of Teotihuacan, lithograph, ca. 1870, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 2. Sun and Moon Pyramids, lithograph, ca. 1870, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.

José María Velasco (1840-1912) was a Mexican painter who accompanied Gumesindo Mendoza in his expeditions to Teotihuacan and portrayed the city’s landscape in his paintings (Google Arts and Culture s.f.). Teotihuacan was abandoned around AD 550, so after some 1,300 years had passed, there was certainly a lot more vegetation covering the monuments for Velasco to capture.

Figure 3. “Sun Pyramid in Teotihuacan,” painting by José María Velasco, 1878,
© Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 4. “Teotihuacan,” painting by José María Velasco, 1878, © Museo Soumaya, Fundación Carlos Slim.

Here are some bonus photographs of the site (way back in the day) for you to enjoy:

Figure 5. Stairs at the Street of the Dead, Desireé Charnay, 1880, ©American Philosophical Society.
Figure 7. Moon Pyramid, ca. 1910-1920,
© Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 6. East view of the Sun (left) and Moon (right) Pyramids, Antonio Peñafiel, 1900, (Peñafiel, 1900).
Figure 8. Moon Pyramid and Street of the Dead before archaeological activities, ca. 1910, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.

The first archaeological work began on site in the early 20th century by Leopoldo Batres to commemorate the centennial of the Mexican War of Independence. Batres was commissioned by President Porfirio Díaz to explore and restore some of Teotihuacan’s monuments. This project included reconstructing the Sun Pyramid, building railway lines, and discovering murals in the Temple of Agriculture (Batres 1993 [1919]).

Figure 9. Workers during reconstruction work, ca. 1910, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 11. Leopoldo Batres, Franz Boas, and other members of the Congress of Americanists on a tour of the Teotihuacan archaeological site, ca. 1910, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 10. Porfirio Díaz and others eating inside a cave near the archaeological site, ca. 1910, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 11. Justo Sierra, Leopoldo Batres, and others during the Congress of Americanists, ca. 1909-1910, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.

Seeing the clothes that people wore back then is a testament to how much time has passed. Indeed, fashion has changed since.

Figure 13. Man next to a Chalchitlicue sculpture, ca. 1910, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 14. Woman and girl at the Teotihuacan Museum, ca. 1915, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.

The excavation, restoration, and reconstruction of Teotihuacan continued through the 20th century. The rest of the photographs here likely refer to:

  • The project directed by Manuel Gamio where he carried out a comprehensive study of the population in the Teotihuacan Valley (Gamio 1922). Some of the work his team accomplished include the excavations of the Ciudadela as well as the exploration and restoration of the Feathered Serpent Pyramid and its attached adosada (Figures 15-17).
  • Excavated pits in the Ciudadela and tunnels in the Feathered Serpent Pyramid by José Pérez under the direction of Alfonso Caso (Pérez 1997:488 [1939]) (Figure 18).
  • The Teotihuacan Project directed by Ignacio Bernal, head of the Department of Prehispanic Monuments. Although some of the buildings were excavated to learn more about their history, most of them were reconstructed so they could be restored back to the last occupational phase look (Bernal 1997 [1963]) (Figures 19 and 20).
Figure 15. Portrait of workers from San Juan Teotihuacan, ca. 1915, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 17. Reconstruction of the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, 4 May 1921, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 19. Men working at the reconstruction site, ca. 1961, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 16. Reconstruction at the Ciudadela, ca. 1918-1921, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 18. Reconstruction of a building at the Ciudadela, ca. 1930, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.
Figure 20. Men working at the reconstruction of a building along the Steet of the Dead, ca. 1962, © Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, México.

These images document how much change Teotihuacan had undergone in the first half of the 20th century. Although several centuries have passed since its occupation during the Classic period, this site continues to be relevant in the construction of our history. To know more about the history of this pre-Hispanic city, you can check the PPCC’s study area section.

References

Bernal, Ignacio
1997[1963] Teotihuacan: descubrimientos y reconstrucciones. In Antología de documentos para la historia de la arqueología de Teotihuacan, compiled by Roberto Gallegos Ruiz, José Roberto Gallegos Téllez Rojo, and Miguel Gabriel Pastrana Flores, pp. 594-615. National Institute of Anthropology and History, Mexico, D.F.

Batres, Leopoldo
1993 [1919] The “Discovery” of the Sun Pyramid. Arqueología Mexicana 2:45-48.

Gamio, Manuel
1922    La población del valle de Teotihuacan, Vol. I, 1. Dirección de Antropología, Secretaría de Agricultura y Fomento, Mexico, D.F.

Google Arts and Culture
s.f.       Teotihuacan. Electronic document, https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/teotihuacan/KgEZFx_-t8JNxQ?hl=es-419, accessed February 23, 2021.

Pérez, José
1997[1939] Informe de los trabajos de Alfonso Caso y José R. Pérez. In Antología de documentos para la historia de la arqueología de Teotihuacan, compiled by Roberto Gallegos Ruiz, José Roberto Gallegos Téllez Rojo, and Miguel Gabriel Pastrana Flores, pp. 488-498. National Institute of Anthropology and History, Mexico, D.F.

Tate
2021 Art Term: Lithography. Electronic document, https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/l/lithography, accessed February 24, 2021.

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SOCIETY FOR AMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY 86TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/society-for-american-archaeology-86th-annual-conference/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/society-for-american-archaeology-86th-annual-conference/#respond Tue, 06 Apr 2021 23:22:18 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=15116 Come join us at the Society for American Archaeology’s 2021 conference. This year it will be online and our team members have prepared the following presentations: APRIL 16 8:30 am EDT – 7:30 am CDT Ariel Texis Muñoz, Tanya Catignani, Nawa Sugiyama and Saburo Sugiyama—Mapping Teotihuacan’s Inception: Patlachique Phase Ceramics Distribution on the Lidar Map 10:15 am EDT – 9:15 am CDT Teresa Hsu and Nawa Sugiyama—Playing with Your Food to Feed the Masses: A Zooarchaeological Perspective at Teotihuacan, Mexico...

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Come join us at the Society for American Archaeology’s 2021 conference. This year it will be online and our team members have prepared the following presentations:

APRIL 16

8:30 am EDT – 7:30 am CDT
Ariel Texis Muñoz, Tanya Catignani, Nawa Sugiyama and Saburo Sugiyama—Mapping Teotihuacan’s Inception: Patlachique Phase Ceramics Distribution on the Lidar Map

10:15 am EDT – 9:15 am CDT
Teresa Hsu and Nawa Sugiyama—Playing with Your Food to Feed the Masses: A Zooarchaeological Perspective at Teotihuacan, Mexico

APRIL 17

11:00 am EDT – 10:00 am CDT
Ryohei Takatsuchi, Nawa Sugiyama, Saburo Sugiyama, Tanya Catignani and Yolanda Peláez Castellanos—Spatial Distribution of Ceramics and Lithics at the Plaza of the Columns Complex, Teotihuacan, Mexico

See you all there!

The conference’s final program can be found at the SAA Website.

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LECTURE AT COLEGIO NACIONAL http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/lecture-at-colegio-nacional/ http://ppcteotihuacan.org/en/lecture-at-colegio-nacional/#respond Wed, 05 Jun 2019 18:41:40 +0000 http://ppcteotihuacan.org/?p=9471 Recent Discoveries at Teotihuacan: Excavations at the Plaza of the Columns Free admission and stream online As part of a circuit of conferences called “Archaeology Today” (coordinated by Dr. Leonardo López Luján), Dr. Saburo Sugiyama and Dr. Nawa Sugiyama, co-directors of the Project Plaza of the Columns Complex, will present an interesting lecture on the most recent discoveries at Teotihuacan made by their project. Multiple aspects of Teotihuacan, such as urban planning, new LiDAR maps of the Teotihuacan Valley, the...

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Recent Discoveries at Teotihuacan: Excavations at the Plaza of the Columns

Free admission and stream online

As part of a circuit of conferences called “Archaeology Today” (coordinated by Dr. Leonardo López Luján), Dr. Saburo Sugiyama and Dr. Nawa Sugiyama, co-directors of the Project Plaza of the Columns Complex, will present an interesting lecture on the most recent discoveries at Teotihuacan made by their project.

Multiple aspects of Teotihuacan, such as urban planning, new LiDAR maps of the Teotihuacan Valley, the arrival of Maya elites, and the sacrifice of animals, will be revealed to the general public.

Do not miss this opportunity to attend the Colegio Nacional next Wednesday, June 12th, at 6pm. If you can’t make it in person, check out www.colnal.mx to stream online.

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