Teopanzolco    **

The pyramid of Teopanzolco is the most impressive single building in the region and is very reminiscent of Tenayuca, in Mexico City, although the site itself is small and consists only of the main pyramid plus some smaller structures dotted around.

It is to be found in the north part of Cuernavaca, the principal town of Morelos, and sits in a pleasant grassy area near the railway station.

History.

Culture: Post-Classic, Central Mexico

Although the Cuernavacan region had been inhabited for two thousand years before, the ruins themselves are of Post-Classic origin. The Great Pyramid itself bears the clear architectural hallmarks of Aztec design and as this area was conquered during Montezuma I's reign, the general date of construction can be given from around 1350 on.

For more about other Post-Classic Cities of Central Mexico, see Cultural History.

Tour.

As we go through the entrance in to the sanctuary, to the right will be seen a line of several low, stepped platforms of various sizes and being nine in total. Building 2 lies at the end and is different in that it is the largest and also faces back towards the entrance. Buildings 9 and 7 are circular in form and Building 10 is significantly longer than the others. The precise functions of these structures, beyond that of ritualistic purposes remains unclear.

Next across is the Great Pyramid, or Building 1, obviously the most interesting feature on display here. 

The main superstructure is composed of two main stages, very similar to the pyramid at Tenayuca and also Templo Mayor, two other classic examples of Aztec design. At the top of the first stairway, the latter stage ends abruptly in a drop before the earlier, and now unclimbable second stage begins.

Atop this earlier stage can be found the remains of the two temples dedicated to the twin Aztec deities; on the left that of Tlaloc; on the right Huitzilopochtli. These temples are divided by walls and restored columns.

Behind the Great Pyramid can be found Building 14. This is a less well preserved but nonetheless interesting structure also with the double stairway design and apparently constructed in several stages, accounting for its complex appearence. This building was supposedly dedicated to Tezcatlipoca, the "human mirror" and the counterpart to Quetzalcoátl.