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1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Jeanne looks over the steep 200-foot drop into the dark green waters of the Sacred Cenote and wonders about those tales of Mayan sacrifices.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - The Maya name "Chich'en Itza" means "At the mouth of the well of the Itza". A walk along an ancient Mayan road called a sacbe led us to the Sacred Cenote. A cenote is a sinkhole in the limestone bed, accessing an underwater river. They were important to the Mayans as their main source of water and had great religious significance. There are stories of sacrificial victims being thrown into the Cenote, along with offerings of treasure. Jewelry, pottery, figurines and the bones of many humans, many of them children, have been found beneath these waters.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - To the southern area of the ruins, one of the most impressive structures is the Caracol, named for its curved inner stairway reminiscent of a snail (the Spanish word for snail is "carocol"). Also known as the Observatory, this tower was used for astronomy; its windows were aligned with the four cardinal directions and the position of the setting sun at the equinoxes.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Another reason for the name "Temple of Warriors" is that carved on the square columns at the top of the pyramid are images of Mayan warriors.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - One of the carved stone tablets inside the ball court depicts a Mayan ball player. Note what appears to be a face mask - prehaps the predecessor to the football helmet of today? No, more likely it represents an ornamental bone through the nose of the Mayan.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Although hard to pick out, this is an image of a Mayan king holding the severed head of a victim (note the carving of blood spurting from the victim's head to the left of the photo). The carving is located at the Ball Court, and this leads some scholars to believe that the losers of a ball game were often sacrificed.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - This pathway led from the main plaza to the Ball Court, the largest in the Mayan world. Games in the Ball Court were used to settle disputes or as an offering to the gods. Many believe the losers were put to death.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - The giant El Castillo pyramid is impressive from just about any angle.
1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Carved images of the rattlesnake are everywhere at Chichen Itza, including this one that sometime in antiquity had fallen from a temple.
CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Jeanne looks over the steep 200-foot drop into the dark green waters of the Sacred Cenote and wonders about those tales of Mayan sacrifices.

1000places > CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Jeanne looks over the steep 200-foot drop into the dark green waters of the Sacred Cenote and wonders about those tales of Mayan sacrifices.
CHICHEN ITZA, MEXICO - Jeanne looks over the steep 200-foot drop into the dark green waters of the Sacred Cenote and wonders about those tales of Mayan sacrifices.

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