Valladolid Adventures Part 12: Artifacts recovered from the depths of Cenote Ziis-Há

 

Display of 19th century flintlock muskets recovered from the cenote. It is not unusual for archeologists to discover pre-hispanic artifacts when they dive into Yucatan's deep cenotes. Most of them were thrown in as offerings to the gods. When divers searched the bottom of Cenote Ziis-Há in 2001, they did find a number of ancient offerings, as well as pre-historic animal bones. However, to their astonishment, they also found large numbers of weapons from the mid-19th century. These included flintlock muskets and a large number of musket parts, a cannon, bullets and cannon balls, lance heads, and much more. 

How this 19th century arsenal ended up littering the cenote's depths is a question people have been asking ever since. In this posting, I'll show you some of these artifacts and explore a possible answer to that questioin. The story involves the violent clashes that occurred in 1847, in the immediate vicinity of Convento de San Bernardino de Siena. This was the beginning of Yucatan's 68-year Caste War (1847-1915).

Looking through the museum's "dutch door" into one of the Convento's courtyards.  We entered through this door into the small museum contained in Valladolid's 16th century Franciscan Convento. The museum contains artifacts from the Convento's 600-year history and others from centuries before the Spanish arrived. Along with these items, they also found bones from various animals dating back 11,000 years. These animals probably fell accidentally into the cenote and drowned.

Pre-hispanic artifacts

Post-Classic Maya incense burner. The Post-Classic era lasted from 900 AD -1519 AD. This clay device, called a chemul, was used to burn copal incense during religious rituals. Traces of the incense indicate that it was probably still burning when the chemul was thrown into the cenote as a sacrifice. The incense burner measures 12cm tall x 12cm wide (4.72 x 4.72 inches). Black and red paint still adhered to it when it was found. The design is anthropomorphic (human featured). The face has two bulging eyes under large eyebrows, a partially damaged nose, and a pair of fangs protrudes from either side of the mouth. 

Hollow log used as a drum. A horizontal hollow log drum was called a tun kul by Maya musicians. Long rectangular slots were carved along the top side of the log when it lay flat. This gave it a pleasing tone when it was struck by a padded stick. Music was an important part of pre-hispanic Maya religious rituals, as well as in various secular celebrations and dances. Since it was made entirely of wood, the drum must have floated for a while before becoming waterlogged and sinking to the bottom.

19th century military artifacts 

Ammunition for a musket and a cannon. A cannon with its gun carriage was also found, but they were not on display when I visited. The musket ball (left) is 16mm (0.62in) in diameter. It also might have been part of a collection of balls, called grapeshot. When loaded into a cannon, it effectively became a huge shotgun. A load of these balls, blasted at close range, would have been devastating. The cannon ball (right) was for long-range work. It was capable of killing several warriors at a time. This is unlikely to have been Maya ammunition, because they had few firearms and no cannon.

A large arsenal had been deliberately dropped into the cenote. Some of the muskets had been tied together with cords, while others had been thrown in more randomly. The Maya would have been delighted to find a large, intact cache of firearms and ammunition and would not have intentionally destroyed them. Their opponents, the Yucatecos (non-Maya elites), were highly motivated to keep arms and ammunition, and particularly cannon, out of the hands of Maya rebels.

A nearly intact flintlock musket. The wood stock of the weapon is somewhat deteriorated and the metal parts are rusted, but it is clearly recognizable as a flintlock musket from the late 18th or early 19th centuries. It has been identified as the "India pattern" manufactured by Ketland & Co. of Birmingham, England. The company operated from 1776 to 1830. This type of musket would have been used by the British Army during the American Revolution and in the series of wars against the French that culminated in the defeat of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. 

When the British were fighting against Napoleon's forces in Spain from 1808-1814, they supplied their Spanish allies with muskets like this. Some of those weapons may have ended up in Yucatan, which was a Spanish colony until 1821. They might have been used by Spanish soldiers and local royalist militia fighting against insurgents during the War of Independence (1810-1821). We also know that in 1847 the government of Yucatan imported 2000 British muskets from the Spanish colony of Cuba. They arrived on the Spanish ship Amistad Campechana shortly before the Maya uprising that began that same year. 

Collection of musket parts, including four flintlock mechanisms. Also included are five brackets used to secure the muskets' barrels to their wooden stocks. At the bottom right are two metal tubes which kept ramrods in place. A flintlock weapon used a piece of flint, which was fitted into the hammer. When the trigger was pulled, the hammer sprang down, striking the flint against a metal plate. This created a spark which ignited the powder in the gun's barrel. 

The threat of Maya uprisings always haunted the Spanish in Yucatan. The conquistador Francisco Montejo el Sobrino established the new city of Valladolid in 1545, after he conquered the Maya in eastern Yucatan. But the Maya had a disconcerting habit of not staying conquered. In 1546, 20,000 Maya rebels attacked Valladolid and were beaten back with great difficulty.  Over the next 500 years, the Spanish and the Yucatecos (who took over after Independencia), were kept on edge by many more uprisings. The east coast of Yucatan  remained under Maya control well into the 20th century.

More musket parts recovered from the cenote. Included are several trigger guards, some oval parts which held the long barrels in place, faceplates from the sides of the wooden stocks, and a collection of bolts. Archeologists have identified 72 parts from at least 31 different muskets. In addition, they recovered ammunition and a cannon mounted on a gun carriage. 

The actions of the Spanish, and the later Yucateco authorities, caused much resentment among the Maya. As mentioned previously, they took over Ziis-Ha and other key cenotes in water-scarce northern Yucatan. The Franciscan friars and those of other Orders often forced the Maya to gather in large villages, in a practice called congregación. The intent was to convert them and to enforce Catholic religious practices. The friars also burned vast pre-hispanic hieroglyphic libraries and destroyed Maya religious shrines. Maya lands were seized to form haciendas and the owners used forced labor under the ecomienda system. 

A lance head and various other parts. Other than the lance head, the function of the other parts is unclear. You might think that lances were an anachronism in the mid-19th century. However, they were still in use among some of the world's cavalry units as late as the beginning of the Second World War.

The henequen boom greatly accelerated land seizures in the mid-19th century (see Part 7 of this series). The encomienda system was later replaced by an equally oppressive system of debt slavery. All this came to a head in 1847. Yucatan was already in turmoil at the time. In 1839, the Yucatecos had declared Yucatan to be independent from Mexico. There were two factions and two competing capitals. Then, in 1846, Mexico was invaded and much of it was occupied by American armies. Seeing the disarray among the Yucatecos, and that the Mexican government was distracted by the Americans, the Maya prepared for a great revolt. 

The shaft of a piece of wooden machinery. This may have been part of the Convento's  noria (waterwheel) system, which had been built over the cenote. It had fallen into disrepair after the Convento was secularized in 1755. In the century that followed, part of the mechanism may have tumbled into the sinkhole. It is also possible that the noria's waterwheel was dismantled and some of its parts thrown into the cenote to create the space necessary for the arsenal to be dropped into the water. 

In June of 1847, Santiago Méndez was a leader of one of the two Yucateco factions. He heard that the Maya were massing men and supplies in a pueblo near Valladolid. He marched there and summarily executed a local Maya leader. Méndez then rampaged through other villages, burning them and ordering more arbitrary executions. In response, the outraged Maya rounded up and killed all the Yucatecos and other non-Maya people they could lay their hands on. The Maya then marched on Valladolid. Their initial point of attack was the pueblo of Sisal, just outside the city and adjacent to the Convento.

Mural about the Caste War, located in the Palacio Gobierno in Mérida. Ragged Maya fighters, armed with machetes, slash at Yucateco soldiers. This was war "up close and personal" and few prisoners were taken on either side. The Maya were poorly armed, when compared to the Yucateco forces. However, they had overwhelming numbers and a burning hatred born of centuries of abuse. In addition, many of the Maya had military experience. They had served in the various armies involved in the civil wars that had wracked Mexico during the first half of the 19th century. They now put that experience to use.

The Maya forces attacking Sisal numbered about 3000 and were commanded by a man named Trujeque. The Yucateco defenders were led by Comandante Venegas, who led a battalion of 300 well-armed men. They had a cannon, an arsenal of extra muskets and plenty of ammunition. The Yucateco force was well-entrenched and managed to hold off the Maya for two days, even though Trujeque's army outnumbered them by ten to one.

However, when it became clear that his forces would ultimately be overwhelmed, Venegas decided to surrender. It may have been at this point that he ordered his men to throw their weapons into the cenote to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Maya. There are other possible explanations for the presence of the arsenal at the bottom of the cenote, but this one seems most likely to me. 

These bells once hung in the Convento's bellfry, but were removed during the revolt. The bells did not end up in the Cenote Ziis-Há, however. They were taken to the Capilla de San Roque (now the Museum of San Roque) in Valladolid and buried in its atrium. It was not unusual during wartime for church bells to be melted down and the metal re-cast as cannons. This may have been the reason they were removed and hidden. The Convento's church was ransacked, but the rest of the Convento was left mostly intact. 

Comandante Venegas's surrender did not save him or his men. Either his white flag was not seen before the final assault, or it was ignored. The entire garrison were slaughtered, along with most of Sisal's non-Maya women, children, the elderly, and priests. The Maya went on to capture Valladolid and all of Yucatan except for the cities of Campeche and Mérida. The Governor was about to order a complete evacuation of Yucatan when the Maya suddenly began to retreat. The season had changed and the Maya farmers had to return to till their fields or their families would have starved. Yucatan's Caste War then dragged on until 1915.

This completes Part 12 of my Valladolid Adventures series. I hope you have enjoyed it. If so, please leave any thoughts or questions in the Comments section below or email me directly. If you leave a question in the Comments, please include your email address so that I can respond in a timely fashion.

Hasta luego, Jim

Valladolid Adventures Part 11: Convento de San Bernardino de Siena's remarkable 17th century water system.

The noria was built 400 years ago to supply water to the Convento. In Spanish, noria translates as "waterwheel". The word originated from an Arabic verb meaning "to groan". This is a reference to the sound a noria made when operating. The waterwheel mechanism once contained in the structure above is long gone. The term noria is used today to refer to the structure which housed it.  

When it was built, this was the second largest noria in Yucatan. The only one larger was located in the pueblo of Mamá. In its time, this noria was considered a marvel of 17th century hydraulic engineering. In Part 11 of this series, I will show you the exterior and interior of the noria and explain how it worked. In addition I'll describe the Cenote Ziis-Há, quoting from the accounts of people who visited over the centuries. 

Overview

Schematic showing the location of the noria within the Convento complex. The circular structure is located just east of the north end of the complex. It is 14m (46ft) in diameter.  The large oval outlines surrounding the noria indicate the perimeter of the Cenote Ziis-Há. This water-filled sink hole is entirely underground, except for four openings, one of which is under the noria. On the west side of the cenote's perimeter, you can see a short thick line and a square dot. These represent the ruins of the Convento's old kitchen. 

In 1584, a high official in the Franciscan Order named Alonso Ponce noted that the cenote was "very deep and wide" and that "growing in it are many small but very tasty bagre  (catfish)." Evidently, he had spent some time at the dining table of the Convento's refectory. A century later, in 1688, a Franciscan friar named Diego López de Cogolludo published his Historía de Yucatan. In it, he includes a description of the cenote. "The space occupied by the water underneath is rather vast, some say as big as two blocks of houses." For more about Yucatan's cenotes, see Part 8. 

Ruins of the kitchen. In the diagram, the short thick line represents the wall on the right side of the arched doorway. The dot is the section of the wall on the doorway's left side. The noria structure can be seen on the far right. In Part 10, I described the bountiful orchard and vegetable garden that was watered by the noria. No doubt Alonso Ponce also enjoyed access to all those fruits and vegetables during his visit. 

In addition, the Convento raised cattle, which could consume as much as 20 gallons of water each day. The cattle were both for sale and to provide meat for the friars' table. So, with their access to beef, catfish, and a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, the friars certainly ate well, despite their vows of poverty. 

The Noria

Carved into the limestone wall is the date 1613. Above the date is the word Año, which means "year". 1613 was when the structure was completed. A visitor named Antonio de Ciudad Real mentioned an earlier noria when he visited in 1588. He wrote about "water that comes from the noria, which is almost next to the convent wall and is built on a very large cenote..." However, the original noria was probably a much smaller and more primitive version. That one eventually proved inadequate, leading to its replacement in the early 17th century. 

View of the east side of the noria. Using a wheel to move water is a very old technology. Ancient texts from Mesopotamia mention using waterwheels for irrigation. In the 3rd and 4th centuries BC, the technology spread through trade networks to India, Rome, Greece, and Egypt. During Europe's Dark Ages, Muslim engineers in Spain and the Middle East made various improvements to the ancient device. By the 9th century AD, Christian monasteries in Europe had begun using norias to free up the time of monks for contemplation and study. 

After the discovery of the New World in 1492, norias began appearing in Spanish settlements in the Caribbean. Yucatan's conquest in the mid-1540s led to waterwheels being used to draw water from the cenotes. Franciscan monasteries were among the first to do this. Immediately following the establishment of the Convento de San Bernardino de Siena in 1552, water was probably still pulled up by hand at first. Sometime prior to 1588, the friars installed their first noria, eventually replacing it in 1613 with the structure seen above.

Artist's depiction of one of Yucatan's norias*. The mechanism at the Convento would have been similar in design, but much larger. The vertical wheel has several buckets which are secured to the wheel by ropes. They scoop up water from the cenote as the wheel revolves and, when a bucket reaches the top of the cycle, its water empties into a trough below. From there, using channels and pipes, it is directed to where it can be collected. 

The waterwheel is geared to a horizontal wheel, which is powered by a burro walking around the 44m circumference of the structure. This explains the circular form of the early animal- driven norias. The mechanism was originally constructed using wood, rope, and ceramic buckets. Eventually, metal buckets replaced the ceramic ones and metal brackets replaced the ropes. The two main drawbacks to the noria were spillage when the water drops from the bucket to the trough and friction when the water is scooped up. Neither of those problems prevented norias from being used well into the 20th century.

*From "La Noria, a Hydrologic Technology of Yucatan", by Nina S. Williams, New Mexico State University, Dec. 2013

Detail of the massive limestone structure. The metal fence is a modern safety device. The walls and buttresses show building practices typical of the early 17th century. These include the use of rough, un-cut stone, held together with mortar. Shaped stone blocks and clay bricks did not come into regular use until later. 

A steady water supply for human consumption was not the noria's only purpose. Readily available water also enabled food preparation, regular cleaning of the Convento, and water for the orchard and cattle. 

An animal-driven noria required only a single worker, instead of large teams of Mayas toting clay pots. The noria worker's only job was to make sure the burro kept moving, a task even a child could do. This labor-saving advantage was important because plagues reduced the native workforce by almost 90% during the 16th and 17th centuries. 

Water from the cenote fills a channel along the side of the noria. The Maya were no doubt impressed by this labor-saving mechanical marvel. However, there is more to the story than that. The Maya had always lived near cenotes as a matter of survival, since there are no other sources of water in northern Yucatan. 

The Franciscan friars pursued a strategy called congregación as a key part of the "Spiritual Conquest".  Native populations were persuaded, and if necessary forced, to "congregate" in large villages where they could be evangelized and Catholic religious observance could be enforced.

The root of the noria is supported by several massive arches. The original vigas (rafters), were made of tree branches. They can still be seen supporting the ceiling. As noted, the machinery of the noria has long since been removed. What is left inside is a large open area with a grate covering the opening to the cenote where the waterwheel once sat. There are six large arched windows around the walls that provide light and air.

The Spanish authorities saw that control of key cenotes would not only ensure their own water access, but would enable them to control the native population and make it easier to congregate them. The Spanish said this was in the interests of spreading Christianity and the benefits of Spanish culture. Many of the Maya did not see it the same way. 

View through one of the arched windows.  The building in the left background is the north wall of the cloister. The wall just beyond the palm was part of the ruined kitchen. 

The Maya had freely used the cenotes for millennia and resented Spanish attempts to control them. In addition, the cenotes were important to their ancestral religion. Resentment increased when the friars began to destroy Maya religious shrines and burn their ancient hieroglyphic libraries. Even more tension resulted from Spanish seizures of traditional Maya lands to build haciendas and to impose forced labor under the encomienda system.

Ruins of an unknown structure. This may have been part of the kitchen. Some of the trees around this old ruin were probably part of the original orchard, planted by the friars back in the 16th century. Several geese can be seen near the base of this structure.

Under the encomienda system, the Spanish King granted Spaniards the right to demand tribute, including forced labor, from the inhabitants of native villages. This was in return for Christian instruction and military protection. It was a good deal, as long as you were on the right end of it. Most early colonial religious structures were built under the encomienda system, including the noria at Convento de San Bernardino de Siena.

A peacock wandered by as I was photographing the noria. Like the turkey seen in the previous posting, this fellow roamed around freely. He seemed curious about me and tagged along as I took my photos. Peacocks originated in the subcontinent of India and did not arrive in Mexico until they were brought by the Spanish in the 16th century.

This completes Part 11 of my Valladolid Adventures series. I hope you have enjoyed it. If so, please leave any thoughts or questions in the Comments section below or email me directly. If you leave a question, please include your email address so that I can respond in a timely manner.

Hasta luego, Jim

 

Valladolid Adventures Part 10: The 16th Century Franciscan Convento de San Bernardino de Siena

Carole walks up a path toward Valladolid's huge convento. Now a museum, the Convento de San Bernardino de Siena is the second largest convento in Yucatan. The only one larger is in Izamal, which I will show later in this series. The structure above was once used as the Franciscan headquarters for evangelization in eastern Yucatan. It has the same fortress appearance that I remarked upon in my posting on Templo San Servacio in Valladolid. Like  the Templo, this convento was the site of several fierce battles during Yucatan's tumultuous history.

In previous posting (Part 9), I focused on the Calzada de los Frailes (Walkway of the Friars). That is the old pathway followed by the Franciscan friars when they traveled back and forth between the Convento and Valladolid's plaza area. In Part 10, the present posting, I'll show you the Convento's exterior. Accompanying the photos will be some of the history, including quotes from people who visited over the centuries. 

In Part 11, I'll show the Convento's  famous 17th century Noria (water works). Part 12 will be about the amazing artifacts found at the bottom of the deep cenote under the Noria. In Part 13, I will take you through the maze-like interior of the complex to view its artwork. The Convento, as you will see, is a fabulous place to visit.

Overview

Google satellite view of the Convento. The Calzada de los Frailes can be seen angling in from the upper right. The complex occupies an area of 14,121 square meters (15,443 square yards). Some of the trees surrounding the Calzada are the famous ceibas described by colonial visitors as lining both sides of the street almost all the way to Valladolid's plaza. However, only the ones seen above remain. The rest were cut down to make room for the colonial-era mansions that now line the street. The wooded area in the lower right used to be the orchard described in the previous posting. 

Floor plan of the Convento. The top of the plan above is north, the direction from which we approached. In the center is the church, which is shown as a horizontal rectangle that is curved at one end where the apse and altar are located. The cloister, where the friars lived and worked, is attached to the church on its north side. The cloister is a square, two-story structure with arcades along each side on both levels. These are supported by columns (shown as a square set of dots). 

The west (left) side of the plan has a vertical row of dots, representing the columns of the long arcade that runs along the front of the complex. At either end of the arcade are chapels. Also included in the complex are the refectory (dining area), several atriums (areas that are enclosed but open to the sky), and an open-air chapel for use by the native people. Finally, there is the Noria (waterworks),  located behind the northeast end of the complex. It was built over the Ziis-há cenote. You can see the perimeter of the cenote, most of which is underground. The ruins of the Convento's kitchen are adjacent to the cenote.

Exterior features.

The front of the Convento complex faces west. This was standard practice for Catholic churches, for reasons I explained in my post on Valladolid's Templo San Servacio. The church is the tallest structure seen in the center. The long frontal arcade has three portales to the left of the main entrance and four to the right. A chapel is located on either end of the arcade. The two-story structure on the left side of the church is the cloister. 

In 1562, a Maya named Nakuk Pech wrote the Chronical of Chac Xulub Chen which described the early years of the post-conquest period. "In the year 1551, Friar Fernando Guerrero came from Valladolid to Sisal and he baptized the people and introduced Christianity here, into all the territory of Valladolid west of Chels. In the year 1552 the fathers settled here at Sisal. They came from the west to teach and sing mass vespers with the singing of the organ and flute and the canto llano, which never before did we know here."  

The frontal arcade, looking toward the chapel at its south end. The work on the basic structures of the Convento lasted from 1552 to 1560, a fairly rapid project as these things go. Three Franciscan friars supervised the construction. They were Juan de Mérida, Hernando de Guevara, and Francisco de la Torre. The most important of these was Juan de Mérida. He was a former conquistador who "gave up the sword" to become a Franciscan friar after the founding of the city Mérida in 1542. A trained architect, Juan de Mérida also built that city's cathedral, as well as the huge conventos at Izamal and Mani.

The arcade above was added to the front of the Convento during the last half of the 17th century. On February 20, 1678, a plaque was placed on the wall commemorating its completion. There is a chapel on either end of the arcade. The one on the south is dedicated to the Santo Sepulcro (Holy Sepulchre) and was designated for use by the Maya. At the arcade's north end is a chapel with a shrine to the Virgen de Guadalupe. This one was set aside for the Spanish. I found this arrangement a little ironic, since the Virgen de Guadalupe is considered the special Patron of indigenous and poor people.

Rear of the church showing the outside walls of the apse (altar area). The high stone walls with crenelations along the tops give the structures a castle-like appearance. Some of these walls are more than 10m (30ft) tall and 1m (3ft) thick. In fact, the Convento was used as a fortress several times over the centuries, particularly during various Maya uprisings. In a future posting of this series, I will show some of the artifacts of these battles that were recovered on the grounds of the Convento.

The area behind the Convento was once covered by a lush orchard. According to the 1588 account of Antonio de Ciudad Real, "In that convent garden are raised bananas, alligator pears, guavas, and all kinds of oranges, pitayas, pineapples, grapes, and a great deal of fine garden stuff. All is watered with water that comes from the noria built on a very large Zonote which is below ground." While the friars were pledged to a life of poverty and simplicity, they certainly ate well!

One of several atriums on the Convento's grounds. An atrium is a large space next to a colonial church which is enclosed but open to the sky. It is used for outdoor religious events and processions. Atriums were particularly important in Franciscan conventos because they were often used for mass conversions. There were usually far more native people who attended these events than could fit inside the church. Carole can be seen standing in the shadow of the palms next to the atrial cross. Notice the rough pieces of limestone used by the Maya masons to construct the walls in the 16th century.

The atrial cross. Stand-alone crosses like this are usually found in atriums. They are used during outdoor religious activities. While this one is undecorated, atrial crosses that I have seen elsewhere are covered by religious symbols, usually relating to the Passion of Jesus (events leading to the crucifixion). This secluded atrium has a quiet serenity that I found particularly attractive. Although I am not religious myself, I can understand why friars and other religious people might come here to engage in deep contemplation. 

While I was deep in my own contemplations, this fellow wandered by. In my travels into the far reaches of Mexico' over the last 18 years, animals have always been present. Sometimes these have included cattle and horses, at other times goats and pigs, occasionally iguanas, and always dogs. Quite often, it has included turkeys. This one is a magnificent specimen. He was not penned up, but just casually roamed around the grounds. Turkeys are native to North America and Yucatan has its own wild species, called Meleagris ocellata. However, the one above appears to be a domesticated variety. 

This completes Part 10 of my Valladolid Adventures series. I hope you have enjoyed it. If so, please leave any thoughts or questions in the Comments section below or email me directly. If you leave a question, please include your email address so that I can respond in a timely manner.

Hasta luego, Jim

 

I

Valladolid Adventures Part 9: The Walkway of the Friars

The Calzada de los Frailes begins at Los Cinco Calles. A "V" is formed by the intersection between Highway 180 and the Calzada de los Frailes (Walkway of the Friars). This intersection is known locally as Los Cinco Calles (The Five Streets). The Calzada proceeds off to the left, in the direction where the Volkswagen is pointed. A four block walk takes you to the massive Convento de San Bernardino de Siena. That was the headquarters for Franciscan evangelization in eastern Yucatan from 1552 to 1755. The Calzada was created for the use of the Convento's friars when they visited Valladolid.

The house above once belonged to Don Marcial Vidal, a merchant and owner of the nearby Hacienda San Gregorio. He was a hero of the "First Spark", the name given to an uprising in Valladolid on June 4, 1910. That spark was snuffed out after four days of bloody fighting. It actually pre-dated the formal beginning of the Mexican Revolution, which erupted on November 20, 1910. It is not clear what happened to Vidal after the defeat. If he was not one of those killed in the fighting, he either escaped with his life and little else, or he was captured. If captured, he almost certainly would have faced an immediate firing squad. 

The route from Parque Principal to Convento de San Bernardino de Siena. At the southwest corner of the Parque Principal (upper right) you can see a small cross. This marks the location of Templo San Servacio. From there, proceed west along Highway 180 for two blocks to Los Cinco Calles. The left fork is Calzada de los Frailes, which takes you directly to the Convento (see red pointer).

In this posting, I will show you the Calzada and relate some of its history through the eyes of people who walked it over the centuries. Some were Franciscans and some were visitors passing through the area. All of them wrote down their impressions and these illustrate some of the changes to the Calzada de los Frailes over a period of 400 years.

Plaque on wall of Don Maciel Vidal's house. This was placed on the wall more than 100 years before Sr. Vidal's heroic role in the First Spark and long before his family owned the house. Its purpose was to commemorate the reconstruction of the Calzada in 1801. The plaque contains the names of several high public and Church officials. The last person at the bottom is a Captain of Artillery named D. Ygnacio Ribaz, who supervised the construction of the road. 

It seemed odd to me, at first, for an Artillery captain to be in charge. However, it occurred to me that such officers needed to be good mathematicians to set ranges for their weapons and to have the engineering skills to build gun emplacements. Building a road would have been a fairly simple exercise for Capitán Ribaz. The laborers who did the actual work would have included native Maya from Sisal and possibly some Ladinos (mixed Maya and Spanish) from Valladolid. It is unlikely that any self-respecting Spaniard would wield a shovel.

The Calzado is lined with mansions built in the colonial-era and the 19th century. Some are now boutique stores and fashionable restaurants. The yellow building on the right is one of those former mansions and now houses Restaurant Calzada, which specializes in ice cream and pasteries. Directly across the street is a mansion which is still a private home. It has a plaque stating that this is "La Casa de Mamá Chelly" (Mama Chelly's house).

While this has became a fashionable neighborhood in the 21st century, the original 16th century pathway was a dirt track and there were no houses lining it. The land on either side would have been dotted with Maya farms. The Convento, at the far end of the Calzada, was situated in the Maya village of Ziiz-há, a name that refers to the cold water of the nearby cenote. The Spanish version of the village's name became "Sisal". The village was outside, but not far from, the ancient city of Zaci, which was renamed Valladolid in 1545 by the conquistador Francisco Montejo el Sobrino. 

Another former mansion.  This one appears to have been broken up into a couple of apartments, with a fashionable women's clothing store in between. Most of the old mansions in Valladolid are single story buildings with flat roofs. It is hard to say how large any of these houses are, since they may continue back from the street for a considerable distance and might even contain an open courtyard. 

In 1549, ownership of the village of Sisal was awarded to a Spaniard named Baltazar Callejo de Montenegro, for his service as a conquistador. Thirty years later it was still owned by one of his descendants, Baltazar de Montenegro. In 1606, Baltazar de Gallegos was listed as the owner. It is not clear if he was part of the same family or just shared a popular first name. By the end of the 18th century, the town had become the property of the Spanish Crown. In spite of all these Spanish owners, as late as 1805 only Mayas lived in Sisal. Up to then, it was still a separate, indigenous village village outside Valladolid's city walls.

This old mansion stands about a block from the Convento. The cross over the door on the right might indicate a connection with the Convento complex, or it might just be a statement of religious reverence by a current or previous owner. During our walk along the Calzado, I noticed several other buildings with elaborately painted crosses over their doors. Sometime before this shot was taken, the mansion above was divided into several apartments. 

In 1588, a Franciscan historian named Antonio de Ciudad Real (1551-1617) wrote about the area. His description shows that the Calzada hadn't changed much during the previous 36 years. He wrote that "from the convent to the town there leads a road, closed on both sides with ceiba trees, which are tall and thick and resemble the black poplar of Spain." 

A food vendor on a tricycle cart shelters in the shade of a ceiba near the Convento. In the mid-17th century a Franciscan named Diego Lopez de Cogolludo (1613-1665) visited. His description shows that the Calzada had been graded and paved. "To go to the convent from town, one has to take a road of eight varas wide (note: approx. 22 ft), made of stone and lime, with a parapet and bordered on both sides with trees called ceibas which are very tall and thick and provide shade. In spite of being far, the convent is visited often by the inhabitants (of Valladolid) who are followers of our saintly religion." 

By 1841, there had been major changes to the Calzada de los Frailes. That year, American explorer John Lloyd. Stephens described "a long street with great mansions along both sides, leading directly to the house of Don Pedro Baranda, one of the largest and best in the city." Baranda was a 19th century business man in Valladolid who set up the first steam-powered factory in Mexico. His house is the same one later owned by Don Marcial Vidal, hero of the First Spark. Since Stephens makes no mention of the tall ceibas, they must have been cut down by the time he and his English partner Frederick Catherwood passed through.

 

Convento de San Bernardino de Siena, viewed from its north end. At this point, you have reached the end of the Calzado de los Frailes. The street curves to the right and becomes  Calle 49. From this direction, the Convento didn't look as large as it had been described. At first, I was not certain if we had found it. That turned out to be an optical illusion, as you will see in the next posting. Historical markers are off to the left, just out of sight. It is always useful to consult signs like those because they often contain hard-to-find details and are often in both Spanish and English, as these were.

Today, the Calzada appears much the same as when Stephens described it. It is still lined with single-story colonial-era mansions, although many are now restaurants or boutique stores. There are no ceiba trees until you reach the Convento grounds. Modern day visitors can join a guided walk along the Calzada de los Frailes to see a light show at the Convento. It is held on Friday and Saturday evenings at 8:00 PM.

This completes Part 9 of my Valladolid Adventures series. Parts 10, 11, and 12 will focus on various aspects of the great Franciscan Convento. I hope you have enjoyed this posting. If so, please leave any thoughts or questions in the Comments section below or email me directly. If you leave a question, please include your email address so that I can respond in a timely fashion.

Hasta luego, Jim 

Valladolid Adventures Part 8: Cenote Oxman at Hacienda San Lorenzo

 

Swimmers frolic in the cool waters of Cenote Oxman. A cenote ("sen-oh-tay") is a freshwater sinkhole in the limestone crust that forms the base of the Yucatan Peninsula. This is one of many cenotes in northern Yucatan, including several within or very close to the city of Valladolid. This one has become a very popular tourist destination for several reasons. 

Among these are its location, only about 5 km (3 mi) from the center of the city. In addition, the site is within the grounds of the beautifully preserved Hacienda San Lorenzo Oxman (see Part 7 of this series). The cenote is also on the tourist bus route coming from the ancient Maya city of Chichen Itza. 

In this posting, I'll show you how to get to the cenote and take you deep inside it, all the way down  to the the water's surface. I'll also explain the origin and nature of cenotes and the roles they played in the lives of people from pre-hispanic times, through the colonial period, and up to the present day.

The cenote is in the southwest corner of the hacienda (see red pointer). You will find a map and explanation of how to reach Hacienda San Lorenzo Oxman in Part 7 of this series. From the highway, you approach the hacienda along the smoothly-graded dirt road seen at the bottom center of the photo. Drive to the parking area in the upper right quadrant. 

The entrance to the property is along the walkway that begins next to the orange-roofed structure at the top of the photo. Walk down this to the casa grande (center), then past the swimming pool. A short distance beyond it is the entrance of the tunnel leading down into the cenote. Before entering the tunnel, walk over to the barrier along the edge and take a look at the impressive depth of this sinkhole.

Entrance to Cenote Oxman. Notice the small sign to the right of the door. It warns you that there are 73 steps down to the bottom. Those with mobility issues should take notice. When I was there, there was no ramp for wheelchairs, but that was several years ago and things might have changed. The hours when the cenote is open are 10 AM to 5 PM. If you would like a tranquil experience, it is best to arrive in the morning because the tourist buses from Chichen Itza pull in about mid-day and disgorge a flood of visitors.

The price of admission, just to swim in the cenote, is $150 pesos ($7.50 USD). You also have the option of paying $250 pesos ($12.50 USD) for a package. This includes access to the cenote, a $200 peso credit ($10.00 USD) toward a meal at the on-site restaurant, and access to the swimming pool. Keep in mind that everything is "cash only," which means pesos only.

The tunnel has flat areas as well as various flights of steps. It is fairly gloomy in places. The tunnel is bright here only because of my flash. Speaking of cameras, one of my sources bemoaned the fact that he neglected to bring an underwater camera, because he found the views below the surface to be wonderful. I wasn't planning to swim, so my Nikon was just fine for my purposes. I didn't notice whether underwater cameras were available for sale at the hacienda, but the proprietor is missing a bet if he doesn't stock them. However, you can always bring your own or pick one up inexpensively in Valladolid before you come.

Mineral-filled droplets of water have created stalactites from the overhanging walls. There are many of these along the path and some are quite impressive. The whole Yucatan Peninsula is a thick, flat crust of limestone. It was created when the area was at the bottom of a shallow sea. Over millions of years, tiny creatures in the water died and their remains sank to the bottom. These gradually built up into the limestone crust. The crust is on, or just under, the surface in most places. The subsurface limestone is covered by a shallow layer of earth built up from decaying vegetation. 

Light and easily worked, limestone has been the most plentiful building material on the Peninsula for thousands of years. Another important feature of limestone is its porosity. This means that rainwater doesn't stay on the surface for long but seeps down until it meets a level it can't penetrate. At that point, it forms underground lakes and rivers. Some cenotes are connected to each other by these rivers. Some of the underwater caverns are extensive. One has been mapped for a length of 376 km (234 miles)!

Stalactites are not the only thing hanging down in the cenote. Above-ground plants and trees send down roots seeking water wherever they can find it. Both the seeping water and the action of the roots tend to widen existing cracks that let in more water. This causes weaknesses in the limestone. Cenotes are underground pools whose roofs have collapsed because of  these weaknesses. Scientists have found limestone sinkholes in many places around the world and have long understood how they were created. However, the presence in northern Yucatan of as many as 10,000 cenotes puzzled researchers for a long time. 

The connection between the Chicxulub crater and Yucatan's cenotes. In the 1970s scientists discovered the Chicxulub crater, just off the northwest coast of Yucatan. They  believe it was caused by the meteorite strike that occurred 66 million years ago, killing off the dinosaurs and much of the rest of life on earth. In the 1990s, twenty years after this discovery, NASA scientists decided to plot out the location of northern Yucatan's cenotes. An interesting pattern then emerged. Many of the cenotes are concentrated along a ring marking the trough of the Chicxulub crater. Apparently, the impact caused weakening along the edge of that trough, leading to the creation of those cenotes. (Graphic from Wikipedia)

Another view of the roots extending down from the surface. The lack of surface-level water in northern Yucatan means that cenotes have been vital to human habitation since paleo-indians first arrived in the area. In 2001, archeologists found the skeleton of a human female under the water of a cenote. They called her "Eve of Naharon" and carbon-dated her remains to 13,600 years ago. The cenotes were natural gathering places for humans seeking water and also hunting animals who were coming for a drink. In fact, the Spanish word for cenote derives from the Maya ts'ono'ot, which translates as "location with accessible water".

The ancient Maya began their transition from a hunter-gatherer culture to one based on agriculture around 2,500 BC. Permanent settlements appeared around 1,800 BC. Since farming requires a substantial and readily available source of water, the areas around cenotes naturally developed first. Valladolid's predecessor, the ancient city of Zaci, had twelve of these sinkholes within a relatively short distance. Two of them are within a few hundred yards of the site of Zaci's pyramid, which once stood in the middle of what is now Valladolid's Parque Principal. 

"Ah...at last a cool drink of water". Roots suck up water from the surface of the cenote's sparkling, clear water. The clarity of the water is caused by the filtering process. This occurs as the liquid travels down through the limestone, depositing its impurities along the way and sometimes creating stalactites. Cenotes generally contain less life than other bodies of water, but various fish have been found in them, including mojarras, mollies, guppies, catfish and small eels.

While the pre-hispanic Maya viewed cenotes as important for drinking water and crops, there was also a religious dimension. They believed that cenotes were the domain of the Rain God Chaac, their most important deity. These dark and mysterious places were also seen as entrances to Xibalba (the underworld). Offerings and sacrifices, sometimes including live humans, were thrown into cenotes sagrados (sacred cenotes). These include one at Chichen Itza and another in the ceremonial center of ancient Dzibilchaltún, just north of Mérida.

Non-sacrificed humans enjoying a swim in the cenote. A rope is suspended 27m (90ft) down from the rim to the water's surface. A very popular activity is to swing from a platform out toward the middle and drop into the water. The person on the right appears to be trying to see the bottom. Good luck with that! The water's depth is 45m (148ft). In order to keep the water clean and clear, swimmers are required to take a shower before entering. This helps prevent body lotions from polluting the water.

When the Spanish arrived, they took note of the cenotes and built their haciendas, conventos, and other important buildings adjacent to them. No doubt this caused some hostility from the Maya, who had freely used these water sources for millennia. The Spanish were motivated by easy access to water but, like the Maya, they also had religious reasons. They were no fans of Chaac, or the other native deities, and did everything they could to stamp out what they saw as "devil worship". This included preventing offerings and sacrifices at the cenotes sagrados. It was all part of the "Spiritual Conquest".

Two other swimmers hang onto a rope stretched across the surface as a safety measure. Both wear life vests, which are available at the hacienda. These are mandatory for anyone wishing to swim in the cenote.  This might be a product of government regulations, but I'm betting the property owner is glad to enforce the rule. Reports of drowned swimmers would not be good for business.

At first, the Spanish followed the native practice of bringing water up in jugs. However, they soon constructed mechanical ways of lifting the water, using using animals or windmills for power. You saw the windmill at Hacienda San Lorenzo Oxman in the last posting. In a future posting, I will show an example of 17th century Spanish hydraulic engineering at the Convento de San Bernardino de Siena in Valladolid. There, in 1613, they built an animal-driven noria (water wheel) over another cenote named Sis-há.  

A view from the water level up to the rim. Notice the safety barrier. It was probably erected after some careless or overly-adventurous tourist fell over the edge. That is probably not historically unusual. Scientists found the skeletons of 120 people at the bottom of another cenote. None of them showed evidence of sacrifice, so they may have just fallen in over the centuries. The opening to the sky lets in shafts of sunlight that create a serene and mystical feeling. As I mentioned before, you are more likely to enjoy this feeling in the morning, when the place is not overrun with noisy tourists and screaming children.

Some cenotes are probably still used by Maya farmers for their water needs, primarily in remote areas. However, many cenotes in easily accessible locations are now used as tourist attractions. With the recent completion of the tourist train around the Peninsula, I expect this to increase substantially. While I hate to see pristine places overrun by hordes of tourists, I fear that is the future of Yucatan, Campeche, and Quintana Roo, the three states within the Peninsula. However, the Maya people have long struggled with poverty and under-development, so it may be that some will benefit economically.

This completes Part 8 of my Valladolid Adventures series. I hope you have enjoyed it. If so, please leave any thoughts or questions in the Comments section below, or email me directly. If you leave a question, please include your email address so that I can respond in a timely fashion.

Hasta luego, Jim