Ancient Civilizations of Mexico and Central America

The Tecpan or Temple Enclosure

Plate XLII

The ceremonial center of Tenochtitlan has been transformed into the civic center of Mexico City. The Cathedral, the National Palace, and the Zocolo, or Plaza Major, mark the site where once stood the famous Tecpan or temple enclosure. Within the serpent walls, according to Sahagun, there were twenty-five temple pyramids, five oratories, sundry fasting houses, four bowl-shaped stones, one disk-shaped stone, a great stepped altar, a “star column,” seven skull racks, two ball courts, two enclosed areas, a well, three bathing places, two cellar-like rooms, a dancing place, nine priest houses, a prison for the gods of conquered nations, arsenals, work places, etc. A native plan of the Tecpan, much simplified, occurs in the Sahagun manuscript. The great pyramid rose in several terraces and was surmounted by two temples each three stories in height, one dedicated to Huitzilopochtli and the other to Tlaloc. Each temple contained an image of the god to which it was dedicated and a sacrificial altar. The walls were encrusted with blood of human victims whose hearts, still beating, had been torn out for divine food and whose bodies had been rolled down the steep flight of temple stairs. The foundations for the great pyramids were laid in 1447 by Moctezuma I, the pyramids were completed in 1485 while Tizoc was war chief and the final dedication ceremonies were held in 1487.

Several very interesting large sculptures and many minor objects have been unearthed on the site of the Tecpan. In 1790 and 1791 were found three famous monoliths, the Calendar Stone, the Stone of Tizoc (Sacrificial Stone), and the Statue of Coatlicue. Since 1897 many fine pieces of pottery and several sculptures have been excavated near the Cathedral and placed in the Museo Nacional.