Xochicalco (Nahuatl pronunciation: [ʃot͡ʃiˈkaɬko]) is an ancient archaeological site in Miacatlán, located in the western part of the Mexican state of Morelos. The name Xochicalco may mean "in the house of Flowers" in Nahuatl. The site is 38 kilometers southwest of Cuernavaca and about 122 kilometers by road from Mexico City. It is open to visitors daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., though the observatory can only be entered after noon. Xochicalco became important after the fall of Teotihuacan, and some scholars believe it may have contributed to the decline of that empire.

The buildings and artwork at Xochicalco show similarities to those found in Teotihuacan, the Maya region, and the Matlatzinca culture of the Toluca Valley. Today, people living in the nearby village of Cuentepec speak Nahuatl.

The main ceremonial area is on top of a hill that was artificially flattened, with remains of homes on long terraces covering the slopes. The site was first used around 200 B.C., but it became a major city during the Epiclassic period (A.D. 700–900). Most of the structures still standing today were built during this time. At its height, the city may have had as many as 20,000 people.

Xochicalco is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a popular tourist attraction. The site also includes a museum with many artifacts on display.

Monuments

Sculptured reliefs on the sides of some buildings are of special interest. The Temple of the Feathered Serpent has decorative images of the deity, showing influences from Teotihuacan and Maya art styles. The steep sides of the pyramid have carvings that show towns that gave tribute to Xochicalco, as well as several seated figures that resemble those from the Maya. Some people think Xochicalco may have had artists from other parts of Mesoamerica.

Other structures at the site include additional step-pyramid temples, palaces, three ballcourts, sweat-baths, a row of circular altars, and a cave with carved steps leading downward. The site also has free-standing stone carvings called stelae. Some of these were moved from their original places and are now displayed at the INAH museum in Mexico City and at the site museum.

History and Exploration

Xochicalco was founded around 650 AD by the Olmeca-Xicallanca, a group of Maya traders from Campeche, at a location that provided a good position along several major Mesoamerican trade routes. The city-state had a population of 10,000 to 15,000 people, many of whom worked in crafts and long-distance trade. It became an important strong place for trade and religious activities after the decline of large Mesoamerican city-states. Poor farming conditions in the area suggest the site was likely built for defense and trading. The ruins were first described by explorer Antonio Alzate in 1777. In 1810, Alexander von Humboldt published a description and drawing of Xochicalco based on Alzate’s account and an engraving from Mexico City in 1791. Emperor Maximilian of Mexico visited the ruins. The Temple of the Feathered Serpent was restored by Mexican archaeologist Leopoldo Batres in 1910. Major archaeological work and restorations took place from the 1940s through the 1960s by Eduardo Noguera and César Saenz. Jaime Litvak King also worked at the site. In 1976, archaeologist Kenneth Hirth of Pennsylvania State University started a project to map the entire site and dig into homes and obsidian workshops. In 1988, a large-scale excavation of major buildings began by Norberto González Crespo and Silvia Garza of the INAH. A new museum was built to display the important discoveries from this project. A permit given in 2009 to the Canadian mining company Esperanza Silver to mine silver threatens the site, according to archaeologist Silvia Garza Tarazona of the Centro del Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) Morelos.

Destruction of the city

Around the year 900 CE, the city of Xochicalco was burned and destroyed. Archaeologists have found evidence of fire and damage in many of the houses and temples that were excavated. These layers of burning and destruction cover the remains from the earlier Epiclassic period. Underneath these layers, many objects were found still in their original places, showing that the city was destroyed and abandoned quickly. A small group of people remained on the lower slopes of the hill. Later, around the year 1200 CE, the site was settled again by the Tlahuica people, who spoke the Nahuatl language. These people are ancestors of the Nahuatl-speaking communities in the modern state of Morelos.

Astronomical observatory

The observatory is a cave that was changed to study how the sun moves. The cave was covered with stucco and painted black, yellow, and red. It has a chimney that is 8.7 meters tall, with a hexagonal shape at the top. The chimney has a slight slope, which allows sunlight to shine onto the floor of the cave.

From April 30 to August 15, the sun shines into the cave. When the sun moves toward the Tropic of Cancer and returns, on May 14 or 15 and July 28 or 29, the sun is at its highest point in the sky. At this time, the light beam passes directly through the chimney, creating an image of the sun on the cave's floor. It is likely that people used this solar event for religious ceremonies.

Temple of the Feathered Serpent

The Temple of the Feathered Serpent has detailed artistic images of the Feathered Serpent god. These images show evidence of inspiration from Teotihuacan and Maya art styles.

Major publications

• De la Fuente, Beatriz, Silvia Garza Tarazona, Norberto González Crespo, Arnold Leboef, Miguel León Portilla, and Javier Wimer (1995). La Acrópolis de Xochicalco. Instituto de Cultura de Morelos, Cuernavaca.
• González Crespo, Norberto; Garza Tarazona, Silvia; de Vega Nova, Hortensia; Mayer Guala, Pablo; Canto Aguilar, Giselle (Fall 1995). "Archaeological Investigations at Xochicalco, Morelos: 1984 and 1986". Ancient Mesoamerica, Volume 6, Issue 2, pages 223–236. DOI: 10.1017/S0956536100002200. JSTOR: 26307315.
• Hirth, Kenneth G. (editor) (2000). Archaeological Research at Xochicalco, Volume 1, Ancient Urbanism at Xochicalco: The Evolution and Organization of a Pre-Hispanic Society, and Volume 2, The Xochicalco Mapping Project. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City.
• Hirth, Kenneth G. (editor) (2006). Obsidian Craft Production in Ancient Central Mexico. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City.
• Hirth, Kenneth G. and Ann Cyphers Guillén (1988). Tiempo y asentamiento en Xochicalco. Instituto de Investigaciones Antropológicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City.