Hello readers!
This week we travel virtually to the ancient city
of Teotihuacan, located in the Valley of Mexico just 20 to 30 miles north of
Mexico City. The site holds a lot of prestige in Mesoamerica as the rulers of
Teotihuacan went out and expanded their territories far beyond the boundaries
of Central Mexico, making it a very powerful empire during its prime. Today, I
will be taking you on a virtual tour of the city where we will visit two major
sites, the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon. We will be
travelling along the Avenue of the Dead via Google street maps which runs north
south, starting in front of the Pyramid of the Sun and working our way north
towards the Pyramid of the Moon.
Starting on the Avenue of the Dead, we face east
in front of the Pyramid of the Sun. Here it is difficult to ignore the sheer
size of the structure. The pyramid is so empowering as it incorporates and
takes up a lot of space. Even through the computer screen I feel intimidated by
the splendor of the structure.
Facing East, Pyramid of the Sun
From here
we head north. Regardless of the distance, the Pyramid of the Moon looks large
as it dominates the tail end of the Avenue. The size and shape of the pyramid
mirrors the mountain behind it. In Mesoamerica it was common for structures to
reflect the environment surrounding the area. The framing mountain exaggerates
the size of the pyramid so that even when viewing from far away, it still
appears daunting.
Facing North towards Pyramid of the Moon (in front of the Pyramid of the Sun)
Walking North along the Avenue of the Dead
The sizes of both pyramids are substantially larger than the surrounding structures. They have a presence that is immediately known from within the city. The avenue of the dead represents the north south axis with the Pyramid of the moon on the north side, while the pyramid of the sun is positioned to create the east west axis. Together their placements create a cosmological map, and with the mirroring of the mountains behind each pyramid, they bridge the gaps between people, the earth and the divine.
In front of the Pyramid of the Moon
*All photos are screenshots taken on Google Maps*
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