One "must visit" spot on your next trip to Mexico is Teotihuacan, an old and extensive ancient city that dates back to pre-Columbian times. The site has a rich history and contains many of the largest pyramids ever constructed, while being an invaluable resource to archaeologists and other researchers. Many people from around the world come to the site every year, and it continues to astound and fascinate tourists and historians alike.
The Basin of Mexico is home to Teotihuacan, and it is not far from the capital. The origins of the city and its founders is shrouded in mystery; no one knows exactly who began to build it. For many years, it was thought to have been a construction by the Toltec people, but the timeline of their development in the area did not match up with archeological evidence about the site's chronology. It has not been confirmed as yet, that the Totonac tribe was the true creative force behind the art and culture of the area, but scholars have attributed the tribe with being the true originators; it's possible that it belonged to the Nahua or the Otomi as well.
Either way, the city was established roughly around 100 BC and building continued for approximately 350 years. At its zenith, in 450 AD, Teotihuacan was a powerful cultural center which housed 150,000 people, making it the largest city in the world at the time. The complex contained massive Mesoamerican pyramids, huge colorful murals, and even multi-floor apartment buildings. Many of the artifacts found in the region were created from obsidian, and the area was a haven for potters, jewelers and other craftsmen.
It is believed by some archeologists that various tribes lived in various areas of Teotihuacan and that it was a multi-ethnic city. These included the Otomi, Zapotec, Maya and Totonac peoples. The spot had great influence among the local inhabitants, and the historical residents there are called Teotihuacanos by archeologists. Its cultural presence has been found in artifacts all over Mexico, including Veracruz and the Maya region.
Some truly stunning ruins can be seen at Teotihuacan. The central street is called the 'Avenue of the Dead', and contains the Pyramid of the Sun, and one for the Moon, which are some of the largest pyramidal structures in the Western Hemisphere. It was recently discovered that the Citadel area, which houses the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, has a tunnel structure underneath it.
Around the 7th or 8th century it is believed that invaders destroyed Teotihuacan. Population decline had begun about a hundred years before that, as drought and climate change lead to large numbers of the population dying out and others fleeing to find a better source of food. However, the city's influence remained even as the spot was abandoned; its unusual and singular cultural items, such as their art and architecture, were incorporated into other large Mesoamerican cities that were built later. Today, it is a UNESCO-protected Heritage site, and remains very popular with tourists from all over the world.
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