One of the largest cities in the world in the middle of the 1st millennium AD was located in the Western Hemisphere, in the valley of Mexico City. It was Teotihuacan, the capital of the first Mesoamerican empire. During the apogee era, about 125 thousand people lived in Teotihuacan - of course, less than in the Chinese Jiangkang (about 1.4 million people) or in Constantinople and Ctesiphon (about 500 thousand), but more than in Rome … The great rulers of Teotihuacan were subject to lands in the west to the modern state of Michoacan, and in the southeast to modern Honduras.
The end of the great city was quick and disastrous. As shown by the research of archaeologists under the leadership of Rene Millon in 1974-1979, 147 buildings along the "Road of the Dead" were destroyed in the fire, and another 31 show possible signs of destruction. Traces of fire were found in 53% of the city's churches. Subsequent excavations have uncovered evidence of fires at Ciutadella, the Road of the Dead Complex, the Pyramid of the Sun, the Temple of Paintings with the Puma, the Quetzalpapalotl Palace and the Pyramid of the Moon Square complex. At the same time, ordinary residential compounds (closed residential, craft, administrative and ritual complexes that formed the basis of urban development) suffered little damage, and traces of fire were found in only 14% of the compounds. This means that the city was not captured by foreign invaders, but by those who first of all wanted to destroy the existing power. As Rene Millon suggested,the fall of Teotihuacan was associated with the civil war.
Traditionally, it was believed that the fall of Teotihuacan occurred in the middle of the 7th century. However, since the second half of the 1990s. in connection with the refinement of the Teotihuacan chronology, the number of those archaeologists who believed that this happened about a century earlier grew. And last week, the famous Mexican researcher Linda Manzanilla and her colleagues presented new data on the death of the great city.
Since 1999, Linda Manzanilla and her team, in collaboration with American archaeologists from Harvard, have been excavating the Shalla complex, located in the city center, 235 meters north of the Pyramid of the Sun. A 5 m wide road leads from the Pyramid of the Moon square to Challe. This is one of the largest compounds in Teotihuacan, occupying about 55 thousand square meters. m. It was surrounded by a massive wall, and only one entrance led inside.
Like other compounds, Shalla consists of a whole series of closed courtyards surrounded by rooms, but the internal elements of the compound are so much larger that they do not look like rooms, but as separate buildings (a total of 29 buildings and 8 courtyards). In its center is a square that differs in its plan from the standard Teotihuacan squares: instead of temples on three sides, it is surrounded by 4 square buildings (E1, E2, E3 and E4) up to 4 m high.
Oppound Shalla, bird's-eye view (photo by Marco Silva).
Promotional video:
The excavated part of the Shalla compound (photo by Marco Silva).
Shalla compound plan showing excavation sites.
The results of many years of work have led researchers to the conclusion that Shalla is not just a high-status compound, but one of the most important palace complexes in Teotihuacan. This is evidenced by the features and quality of construction, as well as the rich materials found during excavations. Thus, 37 kg of mica (which was used to decorate figured censers of "theatrical type"), jade and products made from other valuable types of stone (serpentine, quartz, travertine and marble), and sea shells were found here. Courtyard 5 was a place where craftsmen (carpenters, potters, stone cutters, etc.) lived and worked. Also in this area were found dart points and items associated with the cult of war, in connection with which Linda Manzanilla believes that there was a post of the royal guard.
Fragment of a "theater-style" ornamental incense burner found during the excavation of Building E2 in Challe (photo by Rafael Reyes, INAH).
Greedy beads and a seashell discovered during excavations at Challe.
Like other palace, administrative and ritual buildings, Shalla was burnt down. During the excavations of the central square, burnt floors and walls, charred wooden beams were found. The stone sculptures that adorned the temples were split and burned. For example, the sculpture of the mythical feline predator (jaguar or puma) that adorned the facade of Building E2 was not only burned, but also split into pieces that were scattered throughout the compound.
Mosaic sculpture of a feline predator (cougar?) From the facade of Building E2 in Challe.
At the summit of Building E3 in 2002, archaeologists found an anthropomorphic marble statue that had been shattered into pieces.
Marble statue from Shalla (Museum of Anthropology and History, Mexico City).
Comparison of radiocarbon and archeomagnetic dates showed that the "Great Fire" that destroyed Shalla occurred between 550 and 600 AD. Thus, the fall of Teotihuacan must be dated to the second half of the 6th century. (c. 570).