Oaxaca Part 3: The "Cloud People" of Monte Albán

Great vistas greet those who scale the temples on Monte Albán's North Platform. The view above is toward the southwest from the North Platform's Building E across the Sunken Patio. At the top of the staircase in the middle foreground there are stumps of 12 great columns which once rose as much as 6 meters (20 ft.), supporting a great roof over the platform on which they rested. Beyond the columns you can see three of the buildings which line the west side of the Great Plaza. In this posting we'll look at some of those buildings, as well as the temple groups that surmount the North Platform. Before we move on, take a moment to enjoy the tremendous views the ancient Zaptotecs had from their mountaintop city across the great Valleys of Oaxaca. While there may have been practical purposes for carving off the top of this mountain to construct their city, the Zapotec's aesthetic sensibility had to have played a role.

Diagram of the main Monte Albán complex. The rectangular complex is made up of the North and South Platforms, at the top and bottom of the drawing, separated by the Great Plaza. The Plaza is lined on the east and west with temples and palaces. In the center of the Plaza are a group of buildings devoted to various astronomical purposes. In last week's posting we looked at the Great Plaza, and the buildings along the east (right) side and those in the center. The arrow in the drawing above points to Building K, also known as System IV, one of the more interesting structures in Monte Albán. South of Building K, along the west side just north of the South Platform, you find another structure called System M which is almost the twin of Building K. Separating System M and Building K is the Palace of the Dancers.

The Building K complex we see today was built sometime between 500 - 800 AD. This was the period of the European Dark Ages, but it was Monte Albán's Classic Period. There is a ceremonial platform in front with a large staircase. In the back is a pyramid which used to have a temple on top. Connecting these two structures are long walls on either side, forming a large, almost square, enclosed patio with an altar in the middle. However, portions of the complex were built much earlier, including a wall from the period of 500-100 BC (Classic Greece and early Rome), and the remains of a temple from the period 100 BC - 350 AD (peak of Roman Empire). Clearly, Monte Albán was built, rebuilt, and expanded numerous times over its 1,300 year history of active use. For an historic timeline, click here.

Stela 19, one of Monte Albán's oldest, stands just outside Building K. Stela 19 can be seen just below center in the photo above. It was erected during the period 100 BC - 350 AD, and was an astronomical instrument which served to verify mid-day, one of the four subdivisions of the pre-hispanic day. It is essentially a sundial, standing 5.8 meters (19 ft.) tall. In addition, the stela's shadow positions indicated the winter and summer solstices, and thus it also acted as a calendar. The Zapotecs used both a 365-day solar calendar and a 260-day religious calendar, interlocked in a system known as the 52 year Calendar Round. On one side of the stela is a water glyph, but the other side has not yet been deciphered. Constructing such an instrument indicates a high level of astronomical and mathematical fluency.

The oldest writing in all of Meso-America. These Zapotec hieroglyphs, carved on stone stelae found in the Palacio de Danzantes, are among the oldest examples Zapotec writing. The Zapotecs possessed the oldest fully-developed writing system of ancient Meso-America. The building is named for the relief carvings of danzantes, or dancers, which were found by Guillaume Dupaix, a Belgian traveler who visited in 1806. The carvings were found on the sides of a palace which had been covered over by a building constructed in a later period, a common practice throughout Meso-America. The glyphs on the stelae above appear to be dates of great events in the city's early history. On both stones you can see horizontal rows of dots, sometimes accompanied by a solid bar underneath. These symbols represent numbers. Zapotec writing is made up of both phonetic symbols and symbols representing ideas. It is still mostly undeciphered because even the Zapotec language the Spanish recorded in the 1520s had undergone more than 1000 years of evolution since the above texts were written somewhere between 400 - 200 BC.

The earliest anatomical drawing? The danzante above is one of the most interesting, because it appears to show a woman in the process of giving birth. You can see the head of the baby still in her womb, with the feet dangling below her groin. Also represented in cross section are what appear to be her ovaries. Other carvings in and around the Palacio de Danzantes show distorted figures of what may be dwarfs and hunchbacks. The danzantes may have appeared to be dancing to Guillaume DuPaix, but later archaeological study indicated that many of the figures are captives, either dead or dying, and many are shown as mutilated.

Danzantes carved on wall found inside a later building. The danzantes shown above were apparently captives. The closed eyes and relaxed postures indicate that they are dead. They were probably captured rulers or leaders who were castrated and then sacrificed. In the period when the danzantes were carved, the Zapotecs were in the process of conquering the various towns around the Valleys of Oaxaca. The figures have round, chubby features and thick lips which indicate an Olmec cultural influence. The depiction of dwarfs and hunchbacks, who were considered sacred, is also typically Olmec. The Olmec civilization was rapidly declining during the period (500-200 BC). However, even centuries after they disappeared, the Olmecs continued to exert a powerful influence on every Meso-American civilization that followed. Notice the swimming figures that float above the heads of the two captives. The panels above, part of a long sequence, apparently are meant to be read as a series of announcements of great victories by Monte Albán over its neighbors.

The North Platform grand staircase. This photo was taken near Building K on the opposite side of the platform from that seen in the first photo on this page. The North Platform stands acropolis-like above the rest of Monte Albán and was clearly an area reserved for the elites of the city. On top are a complex series of temples, palaces, and sunken patios which were built and re-modeled numerous times over the centuries. What we see presently was built at the peak of Monte Albán, (500-800 AD). The North Platform contains at least one group of buildings that were apparently the Teotihuacan Quarter, much like the great city of Teotihuacan itself had a Zapotec Quarter. The two civilizations appear to have had a cordial and profitable alliance, and Teotihuacan influence can be seen in various parts of Monte Albán's architecture, as well as in some of the artifacts found in the area. Notice the stumps of the great columns on top of the staircase platform. You can also get a sense of the scale of the staircase from the people standing at the top.

Stela 9 stands directly in front of the North Platform's great staircase. Often referred to as an obelisk because if its pointed top, this stela was discovered in 1902 by Leopoldo Batres, the Mexican Inspector of Monuments. What you see is the south side of a 4-sided monument, with carved glyphs on each side. The human figure, possibly named "8 Flower", near the top of this side is in the process of being devoured by a serpent. The Maya cities to the north and east of Oaxaca made extensive use of stelae like this to record great events. Stela 9 thus demonstrates the influence of the Maya, another of Monte Albán's important trading partners. On other sides of the stela are representations of priests and other important people, often shown with glyphs indicating speech, a little like the speech balloons shown over the heads of modern-day cartoon characters.

View southeast from the top of the North Platform's great staircase. In the foreground are 2 of the 12 great columns. Now truncated, they 2 meters (6.5 ft) across and once stood as high as 6 meters (20 ft.) and supported a large roof that was probably made of perishable material such as wood. In the background is Building II on the east side of the Great Plaza. While the vast area of the Great Plaza below was obviously constructed to contain masses of people, the North Platform seems to have been built in a way that kept it apart from ordinary people and was probably reserved for rulers, priests, and representatives of foreign powers such as Teotihuacan.

Remains of an elite residential area. On a platform just below the North Platform, along the west side, are foundations of a residential area that was probably occupied by the elite of the city. Further to the west, down the steep slope of Jaguar Mountain on the top of which Monte Albán was built, you can see the town of Cuilapan. In the immediate foreground you can see a nopal cactus plant, indicating the semi-arid environment of the Monte Albán area. Nopal was an important food source for the ancient Zapotecs, as it is to the modern inhabitants of Mexico. The flat paddles of the nopal can be eaten, raw or cooked, as can the fruits called tunas that grow at the tips of the paddles.

Cut-away model of an elite residence. The stucture would have been built with stone and adobe walls, with a roof supported by wood beams and finished with mud plaster. The exterior and interior walls would have been stuccoed, as well as the stone floor. The exterior would have been brightly painted, with the interior walls covered by exquisite murals. The stone and adobe, being excellent insulators, would have provided a very stable and comfortable interior temperature year-round.

Tomb entrance in the residental area. Above you see the entrance of one of numerous tombs found underneath homes and palaces at Monte Albán. The Zapotecs did not fear their dead, as some cultures do, and generally buried them underneath their homes where they could be visited regularly to leave offerings. The Mixtecs took control of the area after the Zapotecs abandoned Monte Albán (approximately 800 AD). The Mixtecs continued to use the ruined city as a sacred area and even began to bury some of their dead in the ancient Zapotec tombs. Some of the most exquisite artifacts of the Zapotecs and Mixtecs, including finely wrought gold, silver, and jade jewelry, have been found in these tombs. Much of this material can be seen in the wonderful Regional Museum adjacent the Santo Domingo Church in Oaxaca.

Zapotec funeral urn found in a Monte Alban tomb. The figure is a young man wearing an elaborate head dress. He also wears a necklace and ear spools, probably of jade. The head dress is formed by the jaws of a jaguar, a sacred animal, and topped by feathers. He sits cross-legged, wearing a patterned and fringed loin cloth which lies over his legs. The position of his hands, crossed over his chest, is one of reverence. The urn can be found in the museum at the entrance to Monte Albán.

Another funeral artifact. This one was unlabeled in the Monte Albán museum, so I call him "Seated Monster". The body is that of a well developed young man with the head of an animal, possibly a jaguar. Fangs droop from a protruding snout, and the creature's long tongue lolls out of its mouth. He wears ear spools, bracelets on his upper arms and wrists, and a loincloth, as well as interesting sandals on his feet. On his head is an elaborate head dress typical of that worn by the Zapotec elite.

The Sunken Patio looking southwest from the Teotihuacan Quarter. In the center of the photo you can see the Sunken Patio, bordered on the south by a staircase leading to the large columns, with a temple called Building B on the right. The North Platform contains a series of these sunken patios, surrounded by temple pyramids, and connected to one another by staircases and walkways. In the distance you can see Building K, bracketed by two trees, and its twin Building M further south.

The Sunken Patio and it altar in the center. The Patio is entered by staircases on each of its sides, which correspond to the four cardinal directions. The altar in the center was clearly the focus point of many great religious ceremonies. The staircase on the southern side (upper left of photo) leads to the platform with the great columns, while the other three staircases lead up to large temple pyramids. The temple pyramid on the upper right of the photo--the west side--is Building B. Sunken patios like this are typical of the Teotihuacan influence on this part of the city. What appears to the spot in the sky is actually a large butterfly which flew into the middle of my shot.

Building A faces Building B across the Sunken Patio. Building A sits on the east side of the Sunken Patio. The wide, flat slabs which border either side of the staircase are of typical Zapotec style.

What Building A may have originally looked like. This model, found in Monte Albán's museum, shows how Building A may have originally been structured. Traces of pigment remains indicate that the temples would have been smoothly stuccoed and vividly painted in red and other bright colors.

Building I sits to the north and above the Sunken Patio area. This temple pyramid has not been excavated to any large degree. Most of Monte Albán may have looked like this to early archaeologists. Building I has a small sunken patio of its own on its south side, bordered by a series of partially restored rooms such as the one in the foreground. It was not clear to me whether these rooms functioned as residential spaces or were used for ceremonial purposes.

Building VG was a part of the Teotihuacan Quarter. A group of structures sits on all four sides of a sunken patio at the highest point in Monte Albán's North Platform. This temple pyramid/patio area is called the Geodesic Vertex Group. To the west (above) is Building VG, to the south is Building E, to the north is Building D, and to the east is a low platform with a couple of pillars which probably supported some kind of roof. The patio is relatively small and gave me an odd impression of coziness compared to the much larger Sunken Patio to the south, not to say the Great Plaza.

Climbing the temple pyramids is not for the faint of heart, or the unsteady. The steps were high, narrow and very steep. Since I do a lot of hiking up steep, rocky mountain trails, the staircases didn't both me. However, as you can see, many people who climbed them felt the need for support while descending. Climbing is not allowed on many of the structures at Monte Albán for safety reasons as well as to protect the stonework. I found the easiest way to mount and descend was to move diagonally across the staircase.

Stone slabs form the doorway of an ancient palace. Tomb 105 was found underneath this palace, which is located below and to the northeast of the North Platform near the parking lot. This palace was constructed at the height of Monte Albán's power and influence ((500 - 800 AD). It was part of another elite neighborhood, on the opposite side of the North Platform from the one seen earlier. Tomb 105, which I unfortunately had no time to view, has stone walls and great stone slabs for a ceiling. The stone is stuccoed smoothly and covered with brilliant murals showing a procession of priests. They are richly adorned with necklaces, armbands, feathered head dresses, short skirts, and sandals. Some carry spears and bags of copal incense. The influence of Teotihuacan can be seen in several elements of the murals, and this may well have been the residential neighborhood of their ambassadors and wealthy merchants.

A tiny ball court lies just to the west of Tomb 105's palace. It was constructed very late in the history of Monte Albán (600 - 800 AD). I have seen ball courts all over the Meso-American area, but never one this tiny. It was perhaps 15 meters (50 ft.) long, but only 2 meters (6.5 ft.) wide at the narrowest part of the capital "I" which forms the court. The sides, which are part of the playing area, slope up to a height of only 1.5 meters (5 ft.) or so. Its location indicates that it may have been a neighborhood court for a small group of the elite. Ball courts carried religious significance, but may also have been used to settle disputes. I found it odd that Monte Albán contains not only the second largest ball court (after Chichen Itza) in Meso-America, but also one of the smallest.

View from top of Temple E, looking directly south. Many of the main features of Monte Albán can be seen from this position. In the lower right is the large Sunken Patio with the columns at the top of the grand staircase. In the far background is the South Platform. On either side of the photo are the palaces and temple pyramids bordering the east and west sides of the Great Plaza. In the center of the Great Plaza are the temples and buildings devoted to astronomical observations. In the extreme background, the vast Valleys of Oaxaca can be seen receding into the distance.

This concludes my two segments on Monte Albán. Both Carole and I felt our visit to this city built by the "People of the Clouds" was the high point in our visit to Oaxaca. However, there were many other high points to our visit as well. So, perhaps Monte Albán was like a Mount Everest among the Himalayas. If you would like to comment on this posting you can either email me directly or use the Comments section below. If you leave a question in the Comments section, PLEASE leave your email address so I may answer you.

Hasta luego, Jim

Oaxaca Part 2: Monte Albán, Zapotec city on a hill

View from the North Platform of the Zapotec's ancient Monte Albán. Much to our surprise, Carole and I fell in love with Monte Albán. Most published photos I have seen do not remotely do it justice. Not only are the ancient ruins wonderful, but they are sited at the very top of a mountain that provides a stunning 360 degree view of the three great Valleys of Oaxaca. The Zapotec civilization was one of the most remarkable in Meso-America, but not for the usual reasons. They did not create a great empire such as those of Teotihuacan, the Toltecs, or the Aztecs. They did not build a broad constellation of city states like the Maya. What the Zapotecs achieved was a civilization with an almost unbelievable longevity. Beginning as early as 600 BC, they had contacts with the Olmecs, Meso-America's earliest and most mysterious civilization. Later, the Zapotecs formed an alliance with Teotihuacan, and traded with the Maya civilizations through the end of the Classic period 800 AD. Even after Monte Alban declined and was abandoned, the Zapotecs remained in the area. They came into conflict with the arriving Mixtecs and later the rising Aztec empire. They were still culturally active when the Spanish arrived. The Zapotecs developed the first full-blown writing system in the Americas (unfortunately still mostly undeciphered). Some linguistic historians think the Zapotec language may be derived from the Olmecs themselves! Altogether an astonishing accomplishment, when you consider that all these other civilizations rose and fell in much shorter periods of time. What the Zapotecs had was staying power.

Map of Monte Albán, the Zapotec's city on a hill. Monte Albán was a planned city, created by a confederation of Zapotec towns in the Central Oaxaca Valleys. The Zapotecs had been rising in power for some time, and their written language and an accurate calendar were fully developed as early 600 BC. Somewhere around 500 BC, using human labor only, the Zapotecs began building Monte Albán. They leveled the tops of three small interconnected mountains to hold their great pyramids and palaces. Terraces for living space and agriculture ran in concentric rings down the sides of the hills. The main city was built atop Cerro de Jaguar, or Jaguar Mountain. The city plan is shown above. The flattened area may have been as big as 12 acres, with a large platform on the south (upper left) and another on the north (lower right). The two platforms were separated by a huge plaza lined on both sides with temples and palaces. In the center of this Grand Plaza were several buildings constructed for religious and astronomical purposes. In the course of my two-part segment on Monte Albán, I'll show you many of these ancient structures.

View to the southeast from Monte Albán's North Platform. Three great valleys intersect in the middle of the State of Oaxaca. Monte Albán's mountain top sites occupy the center of that intersection, just west of the present-day city of Oaxaca which can be seen in the distance. For a map of the Valleys of Oaxaca, click here. Be sure to wait for the map which emerges as an overlay on the satellite view. Why build on the mountain tops? Archaeologists think there were at least three good reasons for this extremely difficult, costly, and time-consuming project. First, the river valleys at that time were prone to flooding. Second, the hilltop provided an obvious defensive position, and an excellent lookout point against approaching invasion forces. Third, in this deeply and pervasively religious society the height of the mountains placed the Zapotec religious and political leaders closer to their gods.

Twenty-five hundred-year-old terraces can be seen from a distance. Above you can see one of the other two hilltops which form the Monte Albán complex. The site above is not open to visitors as both it and the other small hill top are still under excavation. However, the terraces where common people lived and farmed can clearly be seen running from left to right just below the crest of the hill. The hill on which the main Monte Albán complex sits is at 1940 meters (6,400 ft.), rising 400 meters (1,300 ft.) from the valley floor. The Zapotecs of Monte Albán are sometimes called "People of the Clouds." At its height, there may have been as many as 30,000 people living in and around the city.

North Platform

Rounded corners of the North Platform are an unusual feature. When leveling off the main platform, the builders left a large rock formation on the north end and used it as part of the foundation for the North Platform. The platform is surrounded by high walls with rounded corners, seen above. These corners are a very unusual feature not found else where in Zapotec structures, and rarely found anywhere in Meso-America, with the exception of the Sorcerer's Pyramid at Uxmal in Yucatan. Keep in mind as you view all these structures that, in the full glory of Monte Albán, they were smoothly stuccoed and beautifully painted. Even as ruins, however, the ancient natural stone holds a warm beauty of its own.

North Platform grand staircase viewed from the west side of the Great Plaza. The North Platform is a whole complex unto itself, and I have devoted a good part of my second Monte Albán segment to it. Some of its complex of temple pyramids can be seen rising above the top of the great staircase.

The Ball Court

View of the main Ball Court, looking directly south toward the South Platform. The main Ball Court lies along the eastern side of Monte Albán, just south of the North Platform. It is constructed in a similar fashion to those found at Tollan, capital of the Toltecs, and the Maya city of Chichen Itza. The layout resembles a capital "I " with short cross pieces at the top and bottom, and a long trunk bordered by slanting walls. The walls would have been smooth in ancient times so that the hard rubber ball could be bounced off them in play. Spectators would have sat along the tops of the walls and the ends of the court.

Another view of the Ball Court, looking slightly southeast. The temple known as Building II can be seen in the background. This Ball Court is unusual in two respects. First, the large stone rings found on either side of some of the other great ball courts are not present and were apparently not part of the Zapotec's game. Second, unlike nearly all other ball courts discovered in Meso-America, there is no evidence that human sacrifice was connected with the game. No one knows all the rules of the original game, nor do we fully comprehend the religious significance it had for the Zapotecs. The game may have played some role in settling disputes. The Mixtecs moved into the area after the decline of the Zapotec civilization (750-800 AD) and adopted many of its practices. In the highland Mixtec areas of the State of Oaxaca, they still play a ball game related to that once played in this great Ball Court at Monte Albán, to the shouts and cheers of ancient spectators.

Stela rises above the Ball Court. Stelae are upright stone slabs placed near or in front of major buildings in many ancient Meso-American sites. They are often carved with scenes and dates to commemorate great events in that civilization's history. I was unable to approach any closer to the stela here because of the restricted access. Possibly it records a great victory for the "home team" like a statue put up to commemorate a victory in the World Cup soccer matches.

Another unusual feature of the Monte Albán ball courts. Unlike any of the other ancient ball courts I have seen in Mexico, the Monte Albán courts each contain niches in two diagonally opposite corners of the courts. These niches apparently contained statues of gods who were associated with the ball game. You can still see a relief carving in the stone at the base of the niche.

The Grand Plaza

East side of the Grand Plaza, looking toward the South Platform. At 300 meters long and 200 wide (984 ft. lg, 656 ft. wd.), the size of the Great Plaza is hard to capture without either using an extremely wide-angle lens, or photographing it from such a distance that much detail disappears. I have tried to show it three photos: the east side (seen above), the west side, and the central area. About half way down the east side of the Plaza are two temples with broad staircases facing each other. Between them in the grassy area is a sunken rectangular area that is called the Water Shrine. All of these structures have a religious and astronomical relationship with each other. The Ball Court is out of view to the lower left. The next large structure on the left is Building II, followed by Building P. On the right side of the photo are the structures in the center of the Great Plaza, Buildings I, H, and G, and The Observatory, also known as Building J, which is adjacent to the South Platform.

West side of the Great Plaza, looking south. The small figures of the visitors give a sense of the huge scale of the Plaza. On the left of this picture are the structures in the center of the Great Plaza seen in the previous photo. Due south is the South Platform. On the right (west) side are twin buildings, M and K, separated by the Palace of the Dancers. We'll take a look at the buildings on the west side in segment 2 of Monte Albán.

Center buildings of the Great Plaza, with the South Platform in the background. Because of their centrality in the entire complex, these structures must have had a special importance. In fact, Building J, the structure closest to the grand staircase of the South Platform, is among the oldest of the Monte Albán structures and records some of the history of the Zapotec conquests on its sides.

Temples of the Grand Plaza's east side

Building II (left) and Building P (rt.), looking northeast. Building P has an very unusual feature. About half way up the great staircase is an opening. A shaft reaches straight down to a small room inside the structure. Twice a year, in early May and August, the sun passes directly over this opening and sends a shaft of light to the room below. The shaft can also be used as a "site tube" to view the star system Pleiades. To the left of the picture you can see a small group of people gathered around the Water Shrine, which is located directly between the great staircases of Building P on the east side of the Plaza, and Building H of the central group.

The Water Shrine. Carole and our guide stand to the left of the shrine. Water filled the recessed area surrounding the central structure. Apparently this shrine filled both a religious purpose and a practical one as a water source. The great Mexican archaeologist Alfonso Caso found a wonderfully carved jade mask of the Bat God buried in the southeast corner, just out of sight on the right. Building P is in the background on the upper right of the photo. On the west side of the shrine (out of sight behind Carole and our guide) is a tunnel opening. There is a matching tunnel opening on the east side of the Water Shrine between it and Building P.

Stone steps lead down into ancient tunnels used by Zapotec priests. The tunnels lead to Building H of the central group, and Building P. The one to Building P is the access to the room where the vertical shaft rises to catch the light beam from the once-a-year passage of the sun overhead. The importance of the Water Shrine can be better understood if you think about the semi-arid character of the Oaxaca Valleys. Water was an extremely important issue to most Meso-American cultures, and the Zapotecs were no different, particularly in this semi-arid location. Accordingly, they had both a God of Rain and Lightning, called Cociyo in Zapotec, and possibly a Water Goddess.

Temples of the Great Plaza's center

Building H, of the central group, contains some unique Zapotec features. One typical feature of Zapotec temple architecture is a broad, flat, sloping surface on either side of the main staircase. Huge crowds of people could occupy the Great Plaza for religious ceremonies. The position of Building H, as the "center of the center" so to speak, would enable the ruler-priests to be completely surrounded by the awed throngs. A sort of ancient theatre-in-the-round, if you will. The sudden appearance of a priest who had secretly moved from the tunnel entrance to the top of the temple on Building H would have created a sensation.

Another unique feature of Zapotec architecture is called a scapula. This feature is found on numerous buildings at Monte Albán. It consists of a rectangle with the bottom side open, as can be seen in the photo above. A scapula is normally a decoration worn suspended from a person's neck and resting on their breast bone. Architecturally, these "scapulas" hang from each end of the rectangular stone design.

Staircase leads to the entrance of Building J, The Observatory. This building is unique not only to the Zapotecs, but within in Monte Albán itself. The Observatory is a five-sided pyramid shaped like a huge astronomical pointer. In addition to its unusual shape, its walls functioned as an historical record of the Zapotecs' conquest of their neighbors. The Observatory is located at the southern end of the central group in the Grand Plaza, just before the grand staircase of the South Platform.

The Observatory (Building J) is shaped like an arrowhead. The head of the arrow points southwest, a 45 degree angle from the strict north-south orientation of all the rest of the city. The stairs seen in the previous picture are the darkened area of the design on the lower left. There was a rectangular temple on top of the original structure to which only the priests had access. Archaeologists have used a planetarium to recreate the skies of 250 BC. A line drawn from the tip of the arrowhead on the upper right, and leading down (northeast) through the middle of the staircase will pass directly over top of Building P and its mysterious vertical shaft. Other measurements show orientations to the setting of the Southern Cross and the star system of Capella. On either side of the tip of the arrowhead are large flat areas with fascinating relief carvings celebrating early Zapotec conquests. The Observatory is one of the oldest structures of Monte Albán.

Relief carving on the arrowhead tip of The Observatory. The relief carving above is one of a great number that used to cover the exterior walls of The Observatory. The design on top, which appears to be a castle-like structure with twin towers, one on each side, is the symbol representing Monte Albán. Below this is an up-side down head, representing the overthrow of a neighboring town or city. Certain aspects of the design indicate the name of the conquered town. The Zapotecs did not build Monte Albán and their civilization through voluntary cooperation. They maintained an iron-fisted rule over conquered peoples through which they obtained tribute and forced labor to build their great pyramids and palaces.

View from the North Platform looking south. A single great column remains in this part of the ruin. To the right of the column is part of a wall that betrays the influence of the Teotihuacan Empire. If you look at the bottom of the wall, you can see that below the vertical section is a small section that slants outward to meet the floor. This is a very typical feature of Teotihuacan architecture that Carole and I saw when we visited that great ruin north of Mexico City. In fact, a good part of the North Platform may have been the "Teotihuacan Quarter" where their merchants and diplomats lived. There were apparently strong commercial and political relations between the Zapotecs and the Teotihuacans when that empire flowered between 100 BC and 500 AD, and a "Zapotec Quarter" has been found at Teotihuacan. However, as large and powerful as the Teotihuacans were, the Zapotecs long outlasted them.

This completes Part 2 of my Oaxaca series and is the first segment on Monte Albán. Next week we'll look at some of the interesting structures along the west side of the Plaza and at the temple pyramid complex of the North Platform. I hope you enjoyed this initial look at spectacular Monte Albán. If you'd like to leave a comment, you can either do it in the Comments section below, or email me directly. If you leave a question in the Comments section, PLEASE leave your email address so that I can respond.

Hasta luego, Jim