Teotihuacan

Teotihuacán

Teotihuacán , ancient commercial and religious center in the central valley of Mexico, c.30 mi (48 km) NE of Mexico City. Once thought to be the great religious center of the Toltec , it is now held to be the relic of an earlier civilization. Teotihuacán is the largest (c.7 sq mi/18.1 sq km) and most impressive urban site of ancient America. The Pyramid of the Sun, the tallest in Mexico, is 216 ft (65 m) high and covers approximately 10 acres (4 hectares) at the base; it dominates the symmetrical ground plan laid out in grid fashion along major thoroughfares, including the city's central axis—the Street of the Dead. Other buildings along this axis include the Pyramid of the Moon; the Citadel containing the Temple of Quetzalcoatl, so called because of its carvings of feathered serpents; the Temple of Agriculture; and the Quetzalpapalotl Palace. The earliest cultural horizon at Teotihuacán dates to c.100 BC The culture flourished from about AD 300 to 900, undergoing tremendous expansion. Excavations have revealed large chambered structures resembling communal dwellings. The people of Teotihuacán brought sculpture, the art of carving exquisitely stylized stone masks, ceramic manufacture and decoration, and mural painting on walls to a high degree of refinement. The designs show a strong concern for cosmological matters, indicating the existence of a complex religious system. Recent archaeological work at the site, as well as elsewhere in Mexico, has revealed that Teotihuacán was a commercial as well as a religious center. Craft specialization is evident in various parts of the city, and Teotihuacán influence is seen in such far-off places as the Guatemala highlands, the Maya lowlands, and the valley of Oaxaca. One portion of the city seems to have been colonized by a group from Oaxaca who retained their ethnic identity. The political organization of Teotihuacán and its sphere of influence are unknown.

Bibliography: See R. F. Millon et al., ed., Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacán (1965) and Urbanization at Teotihuacán (1973); E. Pasztory, The Murals of Tepantitla, Teotihuacán (1976).

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"Teotihuacán." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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Teotihuacán

Teotihuacán Ancient Aztec city of Mexico, c.48km (30mi) n of Mexico City. It flourished between c.100 bc and c.ad 700. It contained huge and impressive buildings, notably the Pyramid of the Sun. At its greatest extent, c.ad 600, the city housed at least 100,000 people and was the centre of a large empire.

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"Teotihuacán." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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"Teotihuacán." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-Teotihuacn.html

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Teotihuacán

Teotihuacán the largest city of pre-Columbian America, situated about 40 km (25 miles) north-east of Mexico City. Built c.300 bc, it reached its zenith c.300–600 ad, when it was the centre of an influential culture which spread throughout Meso-America.

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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Teotihuacán." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Teotihuacán." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 13, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Teotihuacn.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Teotihuacán." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Teotihuacn.html

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Teotihuacán

Teotihuacán, México/Mexico A town and, separately, the ruins of a pre‐Columbian city with a Nahuatl name meaning ‘City of the Gods’.

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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Teotihuacán." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 13 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Teotihuacán." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 13, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Teotihuacn.html

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Teotihuacán." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved February 13, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-Teotihuacn.html

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

Art, Ideology, and the City of Teotihuacan: A Symposium at Dumbarton Oaks 8th...
Magazine article from: Antiquity; 12/1/1993
Evelyn Childs Rattray. Teotihuacan: ceramics, chronology and cultural...
Magazine article from: Antiquity; 9/1/2003
Mystery at Teotihuacan.
Magazine article from: The Evening Standard (London, England); 3/1/2005

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