unsolved murders and mysteries

the mysterys of Teotihuacan

High on a plateau in central Mexico lies the remains of a city that continues to perplex archaeologists and historians. Of all the ancient cities of the Americas, Teotihuacan is the most enigmatic. Nobody knows what race of people built it, what they used it for, or why it was abandoned. Indeed, the remains are awe-inspiring, but it is believed that 90 per cent of the city is still buried under the arid Mexican soil. And yet, this great city of culture held 200,000 inhabitants at its peak. So what happened at Teotihuacan ? When later Aztec races found this amazing urban development they were so impressed by its construction that they named it 'Teotihuacan ', meaning 'The great city where men become gods'. The focal point of the city, which spread over 12 square miles, was an immense building called the Pyramid of the Sun.

This 216-foot-tall structure had a temple at its summit which indicated the city was ruled by native religion. At the base of the pyramid ran a north-south avenue, which stretched for almost three miles. The Aztecs called this the 'Avenue of the Dead', believing the small platforms that lined the series of connecting courtyards to be tombs. In fact, they were probably temples – it has since been discovered that the Teotihuacan s actually buried the dead in their own houses. At the northern end of the avenue, nearest the Sun Pyramid, there was a slightly smaller construction, named the Pyramid of the Moon. About a mile south down the avenue there was a vast open area called the Citadel. This was also surrounded by temples and had the important Temple of the Feathered Serpent in its centre. Intersecting the Avenue of the Dead at its halfway point was another avenue.

The city was therefore based on a grid system of four quarters. The houses in this format were built in complexes of adjoining dwellings, linked by terraces and patios. The building of the city began around 200 BC, with the major structures, like the pyramids, being erected from the first century AD. By the beginning of the fifth century AD, the city covered its maximum surface area, and housed around 100,000 people. Within two centuries this number had doubled. But who were the inhabitants? Archaeologists and historians really do not know for certain. They were much too early to be Aztecs, and the Toltec race, despite having a similar sense of architecture and civil engineering, did not appear until 200 years after the initial building of Teotihuacán.