El Tajín
Archaeological site in Mexico / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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El Tajín is a pre-Columbian archeological site in southern Mexico and is one of the largest and most important cities of the Classic era of Mesoamerica. A part of the Classic Veracruz culture, El Tajín flourished from 600 to 1200 AD and during this time numerous temples, palaces, ballcourts, and pyramids were built.[1] From the time the city fell, in 1230, to 1785, no European seems to have known of its existence, until a government inspector chanced upon the Pyramid of the Niches.[2]
Location within Mesoamerica | |
Location | Veracruz, Mexico |
---|---|
Region | Veracruz |
Coordinates | 20°26′53.01″N 97°22′41.67″W |
History | |
Periods | Early Classic to Late Postclassic |
Cultures | Classic Veracruz |
Site notes | |
Official name | El Tajin, Pre-Hispanic City |
Criteria | Cultural: iii, iv |
Reference | 631 |
Inscription | 1992 (16th Session) |
Area | 240 ha |
El Tajín, named after the Totonac rain god,[3] was named a World Heritage site in 1992, due to its cultural importance and its architecture.[4] This architecture includes the use of decorative niches and cement in forms unknown in the rest of Mesoamerica.[5] Its best-known monument is the Pyramid of the Niches, but other important monuments include the Arroyo Group, the North and South Ballcourts and the palaces of Tajín Chico.[6] In total there have been 20 ballcourts discovered at this site, (the last 3 being discovered in March 2013).[7] Since the 1970s, El Tajin has been the most important archeological site in Veracruz for tourists,[8] attracting 386,406 visitors in 2017.[9]
It is also the site of the annual Cumbre Tajin Festival, which occurs each March featuring indigenous and foreign cultural events as well as concerts by popular musicians.[10]