The Ciudadela

THE CIUDADELA

Back to Chapter Two: Teotihuacan

Or Go Back Home.

Back to Teotihuacan. Or, across to The Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl, or across to the Pyramid of the Sun, or across to the Pyramid of the Moon.

The Ciudadela is a huge enclosure located at the geographic centre of the city. It measures about 400m on a side (i.e. about 160,000m2), and the interior space is surrounded by four large platforms, each surmounted by pyramids. The main plaza would have a capacity of about 100,000 persons without much crowding. Fifteen small pyramids are arranged symmetrically around the walls of the immense quadrangle.

The Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl was the central pyramid of this large complex. Adorned with large sculptural heads, it was one of the most monumental structures in Teotihuacan. A major portion of the principal facade of the pyramid was later covered by the Adosada platform; afterward, the Pyramid was not clearly visible to people standing on the main plaza, as is shown in figure 1.

Figure 1: View of the Ciudadela, showing the Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl obscured by the Adosada platform.

The architecture of the Ciudadela and the Adosada platform are of little consequence in relation to the theories to which these pages correspond to. Once in the Current Theories section, the reader will see that these recent structures are of no consequence; the only reason they are featured here is that they are built in their present location according to an ancient groundplan, millenia old even to the inhabitants of the time of Christ.

Figure 2: An overview of the Ciudadela.