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| ~ Tulum - panoramic view {Click to Enlarge Photo! ~ |
Tulum, 130 km south of Cancún, considered by many as the most beautiful of the Mayan sites, is small but exquisitely poised on the fifteen-meter-high cliffs
above the Caribbean. When the Spanish first set eyes on the place in 1518, they considered it as large and beautiful
a city as Seville, Spain. They were, perhaps misled by their dreams of El dorado, by the glory of its position, and
by the brightly painted facades of the buildings. Architecturally, Tulum is no match for these great cities. Nevertheless,
thanks to the setting, it sticks in the memory like no other.
The site (open daily from
8am-5pm), is about one km from the main road, so make sure to get off at the turnoff to the ruins and not at the
actual village of Tulum a few kilometers farther on. You enter through a breach in the
wall which protected the city on three sides. The fourth was defended by the sea.
This wall, some 5m (16ft) high with a walkway around the top, may have been defensive, but more
likely its prime purpose was to distinguish the ceremonial and administrative zone (the site you see now) from the residential
enclaves, which were mostly constructed of perishable material. As you go through the walls,
the chief structures lie directly ahead of you, with The Castillo (The Castle)
rising on its rocky prominence above the sea.
At The Templo de los Frescos
(Temple of the Frescoes), the partly restored murals that can be seen inside the temple depict Mayan Gods and symbols of nature's
fertility; rain, corn and fish. They originally adorned an earlier structure and have been
preserved by the construction of a gallery around them, and still later (during the fifteenth century) by the addition of
a second temple. Characteristically, its walls slope outwards at the top. Carved
on the corners of the gallery are masks of Chac, or perhaps of the creator, God Itzamna.
The
Castillo, on the highest part of the site, commands imposing views in every direction. Aside
from its role as a temple, it may well have served as a beacon or lighthouse. Even without
a light it would have been and important landmark for mariners along an otherwise monotonously featureless coastline. You climb first to a small square, in the middle of which stood an altar, before climbibg the broad stairway
to the top of the castle itself. To the left of this plaza stands the Templo del Dios Descendente.
The diving or descending god-depicted here above the narrow entrance of the temple appears all
over Tulum as a small, upside-down figure. His exact significance is not known. He may represent the setting sun, rain, lightning, or he may be the Bee God, since honey was one of the
Mayan's most important exports. Opposite is the Templo de
Las Series Iniciales (Temple of the Initial Series), so called because in it was found a stela bearing a date
well before the foundation of the city, and presumably brought here from else where. Further
interesting places to explore are strung out south along the coast. If you simply want to take time out for
a swim, you can plunge into the Caribbean straight from the beach fronting the site.
The Tulum ruins in Quintana Roo:
Are located 131 kilometers
south of Cancun, just 20 minutes south of Akumal on Hwy. 307. Facing the sea, Tulum is impressive and powerful. Known as the "Walled City", Tulum was thought to be one of the most important cities of
the ancient Mayan during its time. Fresco remnants are still visible inside some of the structures.
The approximate date of the
city's construction is unclear. While it is believed to have been built around
300 BC, the majority of the buildings appear to date from between 1200 to 1500 AD, when the city was inhabited by the Mayans and gained its greatest importance.
With its strategic position
at the top of a cliff, Tulum made an excellent fortress. The
city is surrounded by walls on three sides with the fourth side well protected by the sea. As
with El Rey on Cancun Island, and San Gervasio on Cozumel Island, Tulum has the same east coast Mayan style of architecture
common to the region. During the 13th century, the residents of Tulum
became trading partners with their neighbors in Mayapan, another important city also located on the Yucatan. This relationship appears to have
ended when the Spaniards arrived. Within 70 years of the Spanish Conquest, Tulum
was completely abandoned, although some Mayan pilgrims continued to visiting the city.
You enter Tulum through a
breach in its western wall. During the city's golden age, these walls enclosed
all of the city's civic and ceremonial buildings as well as its palaces. The walls also
separated the various classes within the society. While the city's rulers lived safely
within the fortress, the rest of the population lived outside. There are variety of openings
along the walls that are currently closed to visitors. These entrances were probably built
so that the Mayans could gain access to the exterior of the fortified site.
~ El Torreón ~
On two of the fortress' corners are
a pair of towers that served as temples, called El Torreón. The left tower,
closest to the current entrance is in better condition than the one on the right, which is almost destroyed. Archaeologists do not believe that either tower played a defensive roll in the city. Each
has three doors and an altar along the back wall where offerings were probably deposited. There
is a panel with geometric designs above the molding of the facade, which is believed to have been painted at one time.
Due to their condition, visitors are no longer allowed inside the towers.
~ Casa del Cenote ~
As you pass the temples
entering further into the site toward the sea, you encounter another relatively small building called “La Casa del Cenote” or “The House of the Well.”
As the name implies, the structure was built over a cave containing water (a
cenote). The building is rectangular with a room on each side and a tomb in
the middle. At the back of the building there is a small area where occupants celebrated
religious ceremonies. Due to its close proximity to the sea, the water in the cenote is
too salty to drink.
~ Templos Miniatura ~
Tulum includes a series
of small-scale reproductions of temples from the region called Templos Miniatura. The
temples are too small to enter and were probably used as shrines with offerings deposited inside them.
~ Templo del Dios del Viento ~
Templo
del Dios del Viento (Wind's God Temple) was constructed on top of a circular platform, something found
infrequently in the area. The temple itself is rectangular in shape and has only one door.
On the upper part of the temple's facade are two moldings decorated with small stucco statues.
Some of the stones along the walkway leading to this ruin are quite slippery, so watch your step.
~ Templo de la Estela ~
When first discovered,
archaeologists found fragments of the stela (a stone monument now located in the British Museum) inside Templo de la Estela (Temple of the Initial Series) along with representations of people and some hieroglyphs.
The stela was inscribed with the Mayan date corresponding
to 564 A.D. This confused archaeologists who thought that Tulum
had been built hundred of years later than this. It is now believed that the stela was
brought to Tulum from Tankah, a settlement about 4 km (3 miles)
to the north.
~ The Castle ~
Among the largest group
of buildings in Tulum is El Castillo (The Castle).
This is the city's most imposing building and was, without a doubt, its most important.
The structure has two small rooms in its upper part where the principal religious ceremonies
were held. The facade was decorated with sculptures and its corners still show the remains
of masks. The upper temple was built on top of another building, which can still be seen
from either side of the stairway. At ground level are two other small temples where offerings
were deposited. El Castillo was dedicated to the Mayan
god Kukulkan and is located on the site's highest point. In
addition to its function as a temple, El Castillo may also have
been used as a lighthouse or a kind of beacon.
~ Templo del Dios Descendente ~
Templo del Dios Descendente (Temple
of the Descending God) is one of the most beautiful temples in Tulum. This is not the result of age, but the way these entries were originally designed. As
with several other structures on the site, Templo del Dios
Descendente was constructed over another temple that was filled in to serve as its base.
The temple gets its name from a sculpture located there that represents a god-human wearing a
headdress, descending from the heavens, holding an object of some kind. This partly human
descending figure is found on several other buildings in the site as well as other buildings in the area, including Coba, another archaeological site located around 50 km (30 miles) to the west. Although
the temple was originally decorated with a mural of several gods, this work of art has since been lost to time and the elements.
At the bottom of the stairs is a small building that is believed to have been dedicated to the
goddess Ixchel. Inside this small structure that archaeologists
suspect represent the male sexual organ.
~ El Palacio ~
El Palacio (The Palace),
as its name implies, served as a residence for Tulum's most important inhabitants. There are benches around the walls that were used as seats and probably as beds. At
the back of the building is an area where the family held religious ceremonies. This site
is badly deteriorated, but contains a fine stucco carving of a descending god. It is also known
as the House of the Halach Uinic (First Lord or kind).
~ La Casa de las Columnas ~
La Casa de las Columnas (The House
of the Columns) faces away from the place across a small plaza to the south. It
was used by the Halach Uinic, or king, to do businesses with lords
of lower rank.
The Reservoir House or Structure
20:
This is a small residential building
that got its name from the small reservoir found there.
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