Calakmul, Mexico

Wonder in Mexico

Wonder: Calakmul
Country: Mexico
Region: Campeche
Visitable: Yes
About:
Calakmul is one of the largest ancient Maya cities ever uncovered. Cyrus Lundell, the discoverer, was who gave the name to the place and means The City of the Two Adjacent Pyramids. Mysterious place

The Archaeological site of Calakmul is located very deeply in the jungles of Petén Basin, over 1,800,000 acre of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve in the State of Campeche, Mexico; into the limits of the municipalities of Champotón and Hopelchén; and 30 kilometres from the Guatemalan border.

This preponderant Maya site was the major urban center of the Classic Period, with more than 500 archaeological pieces, so that, it is consider thebiggest valuable texts deposit of dynastic Maya because of there are many steles surrounding the Main Plaza.

Over 6,750 ancient Calakmul structures, the largest one is the Great Pyramid of 55 metres high and 4 tombs inside, being the tallest Pyramid of the whole Maya Pyramids, and as many other similar constructions, to reach its current size, 2 square kilometres, it was increased by building upon other existing temples; and the whole site covered with residential structures is about 20 square kilometres.

Being also the biggest Maya City of Mexico, next to Palenque in Mexico and Tikal in Guatemala, Calakmul was part of this powerful triangle. It is also one of the richest places in structures including 117 steles, the largest number in Mexico, which represent its rules and their wives. However, due to they are sculpted in soft limestone, most of them have eroded making harder, and in some cases, impossible to interpret them.

There were also discovered many detailed murals in Calakmul, which in the opposite of other cultures, these murals do not represent the elite activities, in the other hand, the scenes detailed are from the people during the food preparation and eating like maize drink, tamales, etc. The murals also have glyphs describing daily events, and the most prominent is a lady, nowadays known as Señora Piedra 9. Among other important materials, there are many pieces of ceramic, which allows to the anthropologists to identify and know better the thoughts of the people who lived in the archaeological site.

Calakmul represent the ecological line of Yucatan Peninsula, located in the middle of tropical forests with a warm and sub-humid climate and rains during the summer, while during the winter the temperature descend sometimes until 32ºF. This combination has allowed the creation of rich fauna, including jaguars, turkey vultures, xoco-pheasant, toucan, three types of eagles, tapirs, peraries, anteaters, armadillos, parrots, 400 species of butterflies, 147 types of vertebrates, and rich flora with the famous orchids, and about 1600 varieties of plants.

This amazing Archaeological Site is open to the public during the whole week, from 8am to 5pm.

HISTORY

Ever since its inception, the Calakmul city received influences from both the north and the south, showing its role as an early geographic center in the Maya Area, however it also was part of a Region composed by El Mirador, Nakbé and Uaxactún, other archaeological sites.

Overview of Calakmul

One century earlier of the Central Maya Area collapse, due to the defeat of its leader Garra de Jaguar, the Calakmul rulers were trying to intensify their political strategies to the north in order to be part of the whole peninsula peak. During the first half of the Late Classic Period, Calakmul kept its political dominance over the Central Maya Area, reaching its maximum peak.

Culturally, Calakmul have been considered as the capital of a Regional Maya State during the Classic Period, making of it a superpower enemy of Tikal, the other city which Calakmul was always disputing the hegemony of the Central Maya Area with, during the Classic Period.

During the sixth and seventh centuries of this era, Calakmul had also the dominance of the social and political life of the area, allowing to its ruling class to play an important role into the political thinking; and at the same time, this made possible that certain number of cities participated as allied of Calakmul, creating in some degree, what nowadays is consider as The Calakmul Kingdom.

During its time, this archaeological site was a superpower Maya city over both regions North of Peten and South of Yucatan. Calakmul was able to administer a huge domain featured by the extensive distribution of an emblem the glyph of the Snake Head Sign, establishing to be the Serpent Head Polity. As same as Tikal, the Serpent Head Polity reigned during most of the Classic Maya Period with an estimated population of 50,000 people and influenced governments from 150 kilometres far away.

Calakmul was first discovered on December 29th, 1931, from the air by Cyrus L. Lundell, a biologist of the Mexican Exploitation Chicle Company, but in March 1932 it was reported to Sylvanus G. Morley of the Carnegie Institute at Chichen Itzá.

Video Calakmul, Mexico