Temple Of The Warriors In Chichen Itza

Mexico Essay, Research Paper

The Temple of the Warriors, also known as Templo de los Guerreros, was supposedly built by the Itza civilization between the tenth and the twelfth century in the ancient city of Chichen Itza, Mexico. (See figure 1) Chichen Itza is located in the Mexican lowlands. The Itza supposedly occupied Chichen Itza at two different times, the first being from 495 A.D. to 692 A.D. and the second being from 948 A.D. to 1204 A.D. The temple was built in the second occupation of Chichen Itza (Vargas, 1). Tula, the ancient capital of the Toltec’s gave most of the influence in architecture to the Itza’s. The Temple of the Warriors is located on the east side of the ancient city near the Court of a Thousand Columns. (See figure 2) The temple was primarily used for sacrificial purposes and ceremonies were conducted to please the gods that they worshipped. Located directly inside of the temple is another temple known as the Buried Temple. The Temple of the Warriors was built directly over the top of the pre-existing one.

In 1925, the Carnegie Institute discovered the Temple of the Warriors in the ancient ruin city of Chichen Itza. Ann Axtell Morris was one of the archeologists that took on the task of unearthing the Temple of the Warriors. In her book Digging in the Yucatan, she describes the pain staking process of bringing the building back to the original state. Digging in the Yucatan is basically a primary source based off of archeological studies done during the time Morris was in Chichen Itza. In her book, Morris describes the artifacts pulled from the ruined structure, the rebuilding of the structure and the contributions of the excavation that she did on the Temple of the Warriors. This book was published in 1931, which means that the book was published before any more analysis could be done on the temple’s inscriptions or hieroglyphics. Morris’ book allowed a first hand insight into the excavation of the temple through the eyes of an archeologist that was on site during the unfolding of the hidden treasures.

In the book, Your Yucatan Guide, by Henry F. Godfrey. The book is basically a guide around the Yucatan but delves into the subject of the Temple of the Warriors. Throughout the selected pages, he describes the different artifacts and various aspects of the temple. This book should be considered a primary source because it is relying on the artifacts that are still present at the temple. It should also be considered a secondary source because the explanations he gives are his own and no reference is made to authority figures about what he is proclaiming.

Maya: The Riddle and Rediscovery of a Lost Civilization, a book by Charles Gallenkamp. Gallenkamp studied anthropology at the University of New Mexico and has been a leader of several archeological expeditions throughout the Southwest, Mexico, and Central America. He is the director of the Mayan Research Fund, a research associate of the Instituto Interamericano and an adviser to the Department of Anthropology of the Houston Museum of Natural History. Maya is considered a primary source since the author, Gallenkamp, is an expert on the Mayan culture and has been on many archeological digs throughout his lifetime. Since this book was published in 1959, some of his findings and interpretations might be a little out dated since more studies have been done on the ruins of the Temple of the Warriors.

John S. Henderson a Professor of Anthropology at Cornell University published a book, The World of the Ancient Maya, which gives a great overview of the Temple of the Warriors. His book is both a primary and secondary source based on archeology and literal research. It is a primary resource because Henderson is pulling information from the actual temple. It is also a secondary resource because Henderson incorporates his own analysis into points of the book.

A website written by Dr. Eduardo Vargas entitled, Chichen Itza, is a primary source because it is based off of the temple and the ruined city which is all archeological research. Another website that I found entitled Temple of the Warriors, Chichen Itza, is also a primary source. In this the author, who is not disclosed, describes the building and some of the different aspects that gives the temple a unique character.

In Morris’s book, Digging in the Yucatan she describes the process taken by the archeologists of the Carnegie Institute. From the accidental find to the final handing over of the Temple of the Warriors to the Mexican Government, her book covers much detail. Earl H. Morris, the husband to Ann Axtell Morris, discovered the Temple of the Warriors while watching over the excavation of the Court of a Thousand Columns. He ventured over to a huge mound for that seemed to be attached to the Court. After pondering about the mound a few days, he gave the orders to start clearing it. (See figure 3)

Within a few days, two columns were found and next to them were two stone rattle snake tails. They immediately realized that it was part of the Plumed Serpent because it was the symbol for the chief god of Chichen Itza. “His image is painted and carved upon temple walls, hundreds of times repeating gaping fanged jaws and feather-covered slimy curves” (Morris, 106). They dug to the bottom of the columns and found the two serpent heads in perfect condition. After many days of putting the tails back togeth