When those who would become the Aztecs discovered this city in the 1200s, it was already ancient. And it was already mostly empty, having been abandoned for reasons unknown more than 400 years prior. But at its zenith, Teotihuacan was perhaps the most influential civilization in Meso-America, its culture spreading as far as the mighty cities of the Maya in Central America, and inspiring the Aztecs centuries later. And while there is more that we don’t know about those who built and inhabited this mighty city than what we do know, we can certainly still appreciate how impressive this civilization was in what is the most popular day trip from Mexico City.

Let’s start with a bit of what we don’t know about Teotihuacan and those who built it. We don’t know what they called themselves or their city; the name we know now was given by the Aztecs. We don’t know how the city was ruled, or if it was a city-state or the capital of a directly governed empire. We don’t know what the specific purpose of any of the monumental buildings was. And we don’t know why the city was abandoned, or what caused its destruction, though theories of both natural causes as well as man-made (war or a peasant uprising) abound.

Even much of what we do know – or at least think we know – is conjecture. Estimates of the population of Teotihuacan stem from its geographic footprint, approximately eight square miles, and range from 125,000 to 200,000 or so. (These would make it the largest city in the Americas at the time, and in the top ten world-wide.) We know from archaeological evidence that the city was founded somewhere in the first or second century BCE, but that smaller villages predated it by more than 500 years. We know that despite not having metal tools, the artisans here were able to create truly monumental and intricate works, but we don’t know exactly how they did so. And while we don’t know what they called their gods – we have the Aztec names for them – we know that the influence of Teotihuacan was such that those gods, or extremely close proximities of them, were adopted all over what is now Mexico and Central America. (The architecture here was also imitated both by contemporaneous civilizations like the Maya and by those to follow, like the Toltec and Aztec peoples.)

It is a lot of unknown, and a lot of conjecture, to try to explain a truly magnificent place.

This was my second visit to Teotihuacan in as many trips to Mexico City. Tour options abound for day trips, with prices fluctuating based on time at the site, a desire of a visit to be guided or not, and based on both group size and what else might be included. On my first trip, I took a tour that began at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and then had about two hours of self-guided time at Teotihuacan. This trip, while again I was given a couple hours on my own in the archaeological park, I decided to begin my journey from above.

Sunrise at Teotihuacan sees the skies filled with hot air balloons. Coming in all sizes, from those with a pilot and two visitors to those with more than 20 guests, they float on the wind in what visitors hope will be a direction roughly toward the ancient city. (Given hot air balloons’ inability to choose their own directions, that outcome isn’t a guarantee, although pilots try their best to navigate the wind currents at various elevations to provide the best view possible.) From a vantage point ranging from a few hundred to a couple thousand feet up, the vastness of the city and the scale of its largest buildings can truly be seen.

The city is built in what appears to be a long row, with one huge building (the Pyramid of the Moon) at one end and another temple complex (the Temple of the Feathered Serpent) toward the other, with the largest structure (the Pyramid of the Sun) between. It isn’t oriented due north-south, being off by about 15 degrees, to likely align with various astronomical observations, though what those might have been are again conjecture. (Notice a pattern?) Smaller buildings line this main axis, and the city spread out from there with residential buildings of peasants that have not survived, or haven’t been totally unearthed.

From this height, one can also appreciate one of the major challenges with excavating at Teotihuacan: the ancient city is totally surrounded by several modern Mexican towns. These are probably built atop more buried discoveries, or even built using the stones of the ancient city. Without displacing the populations, the secrets beneath are likely to remain unknown to us, at least for the time being.

After landing and breakfast in a local cave (a lovely experience), it was time to discover more of the culture of Teotihuacan.

It is thought that one of the reasons Teotihuacan achieved such preeminence in the region is its monopoly on the trade of obsidian. Obsidian is volcanic glass, formed when lava (from the numerous now-dormant or extinct volcanoes in the area) cools rapidly with minimal crystallization. While it can be carved into intricate artwork – and it was – its foremost use was for weaponry, given its ability to hold incredibly sharp points. Dominating this most important resource allowed Teotihuacan to accumulate incredible wealth, with trade including jade from Guatemala, shells from coastal Mexico, and more, all found here.

My small group spends some time at a workshop that sells obsidian crafts, with a local walking us through the production methods both of ancient and modern obsidian items. He also demonstrates uses of the maguey plant (an agave), which for those in Teotihuacan provided needles from its spines, paper from its onion-skin-like layers, textiles from its fibers, and the alcohols pulque and mezcal from its fermented sugary liquid.

Then it is time to enter the city of Teotihuacan itself. With only a couple of hours (most group tours seem to limit themselves to roughly that amount, unfortunately), and an entrance spot adjacent to the Pyramid of the Sun, it is impossible to see the entire site. The further away Temple of the Feathered Serpent thus remains a mystery to me, although after seeing a recreation of its carvings at Mexico City’s National Museum of Anthropology, I resolve that my third visit to this place will include this until now elusive portion.

The main portion of Teotihuacan that most visitors will see is the part between the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon along the axis of the Avenue of the Dead. This main artery of the ancient city is lined by mini pyramids that may have held dwellings of the noble class, temples, palaces, important shops, or meeting places. Again, specific buildings’ uses are mainly conjecture. A couple can be climbed, but most are fenced off to prevent erosion from the annual million or more visitors.

The one that can be explored is called the Palace of Quetzalpapalotl, a sort of bird-butterfly conglomeration taken from the carvings here on the pillars of one of the courtyards. Discovered only in 1962, these ornate reliefs provide an insight into what much of the city may have looked like at its peak from roughly 450 to 650 CE. (And no, we don’t know what the building was actually for, with theories ranging from a noble home – hence the name palace – to a center for religious ceremony given its location on the plaza at the base of the Pyramid of the Moon.)

By far, the most impressive buildings in this portion of Teotihuacan are the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon. Both were built in the second and third centuries CE, with that of the Moon being slightly older than that of the Sun, although it would take centuries to complete each. (The names come from the Aztecs, and in another of our ever-present pattern, we don’t know what either pyramid was actually for, what god each might have been dedicated to, or anything else. We do know that the Pyramid of the Sun seems to be solid fill, while the Pyramid of the Moon’s modern site surrounds an older and smaller building.)

The Pyramid of the Sun is the largest building in Teotihuacan, and one of the largest in the ancient world. It measures 225 meters on each side, roughly the same as the Great Pyramid of Giza, although is only half the height of its Egyptian counterpart at a “mere” 75 meters. (Again, consider that this was built without the assistance of metal tools. It is extraordinary!) As of this writing, it is closed while its central staircase gets some much-needed renovation, and will then reopen for visitors to climb.

The Temple of the Moon, meanwhile, can be partially scaled, up to a platform at roughly its midway point. Stairs are steep and narrow, but the view looking directly down the Avenue of the Dead (again the name is from the Aztecs and does not reflect the actual name or use of the area) makes it worthwhile for those with the inclination and stamina to ascend.

Much of the current ancient city of Teotihuacan is a partial reconstruction, either because buildings were found in ruin (the city was abandoned by the end of the 8th century or so, and most excavations are 20th century projects, so that is a lot of time for collapse), or because archaeologists dug beneath existing structures to gain insights as to their potential uses. These reconstructions, according to a guide, are denoted by the addition of smaller stones into the mortar between the larger, although as a side note I do love that aesthetic.

For more of the original artifacts from Teotihuacan, we return to the National Museum of Anthropology, where one exhibit teaches of this city and what we know. Many of the surviving artifacts are of Tlaloc, god of rain, although the name is the one the Aztecs gave the deity when they adopted it, and not necessarily what the ancient Teotihuacan residents would have called him. Other pieces are dedicated to Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent, who again was adopted by the Aztecs as their central deity.

While there is so much we don’t know about Teotihuacan, and while my curiosity about those things runs rampant, that sense of mystery does add to the experience. Seeing the site from above or from within, I am free to imagine what I believe this place to have been, what those living here may have used it for, and what a contemporaneous Teotihuacan might have looked like. And though my imagination is probably not based in anything resembling reality, it only adds to the sense of awe that a visit here is sure to bring you.

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