#Seven lost caves of aztec series

Nearby, sits the fully intact Piedra Chalchihuitl stone, with a stylised glyph that translates as “the place of the precious or sacred”.

Given the city’s recent history with quakes, this was a destabilising thought to digest while underground. Tonatiuh was the godly governor in what the Mexica referred to as “the era of the fifth sun” – a period still unfolding that is predicted to end in destruction by earthquake. I held my breath as we made our way down the spiral staircase, exhaling only once my eyes saw the Temple of Tonatiuh, the god of the sun. Today, many of Mexico City’s more than 21 million residents go about their lives while walking just above the remains of the Mexica city waiting to be uncovered below.

#Seven lost caves of aztec series

It also inspired a series of ongoing excavations that continue to unearth new clues about the Mexica’s way of life. The discovery and old Spanish records of the Mexica capital’s layout enabled archaeologists to determine that there may be many more pre-Hispanic buildings buried nearby. When electrical workers accidentally discovered a giant monolith close to the cathedral in 1978, it spurred a five-year excavation that unearthed the Mexica’s spectacular Templo Mayor (“Great Temple”).