Comalcalco, Tabasco, Mexico Tour Or Travel
Pictures And Photos

George And Audrey DeLange

Comalcalco ( ko-mal-KAHL-ko ), Tabasco: GPS N 18 degrees 16 min. W 93 degrees 10 min. By car, the fastest route from Villahermosa is Highway 190 west to Cárdenas, and then north on Highway 187. About nineteen kilometers (12 miles) before Comalcalco, is the village of Cunduacán. You will then enter Comalcalco, which is a busy agricultural center with an interesting market where you can buy wicker baskets, like those used to ferment cacao, and pichanchas (a gourd with multiple holes in it), used to extract flavor from fresh cacao beans for a refreshing drink. The ruins of Comalcalco are about 3km (2 miles) on the same highway past the town; watch for signs to the turn-off on the right. Park in the lot and pay admission at the visitor center by the museum. The museum, with many pre-Hispanic artifacts, is small but interesting and worth the 20 minutes or so it takes to see it. The people who lived here are called the Chontal Maya. Comalcalco is one of the most interesting archaeological sites that we have visited. That is because of its interesting architectural features and its use of a special type of kiln - brick technology. These same features, in a cultural context, argue strongly in favor of transoceanic contact between Comalcalco and the old world. While all of the evidence is not yet in; the utilization of a very unique fired brick technology, with Roman - like architectural measurements, and Roman - like architectural features leads some researchers to beleive these techniques were imported from outside of the Americas into Comalcalco. Researchers point out the following facts to support their theory. The Indian Satavahana Dynasty (circa 200 BC - 200 AD) is known to have had extensive trade connections with Rome. By this time the use of kiln-baked brick had been revived in Hindu Kush and the middle Ganges Valley. The Kushana (Yüeh-Chih) people migrated from Hindu Kush to the lower Ganges and developed active maritime trade with Southeast Asia. They supplied horses to that region and introduced Brahmi script to Oc-eo. Roman artefacts are also known to have been traded to Oc-eo. Comalcalco employed a similar fired brick technology, and Indic motifs seem to have been inscribed on some of the bricks. Brahmi script (possibly) existed at Comalcalco. Roman-like measurements and Roman architectural features also seem to have been employed. Urn-burials, virtually contemporary with those in India and Southeast Asia, exist at the site. Elsewhere in the Maya region, Roman-style figurines have emerged, and pre-Columbian horse remains have also been excavated. Old World parasites and DNA affinities, the blowgun, bark cloth, and paper manufacturing add to the mix. We understand that researchers are now trying to understand if indeed a transoceanic migration may have occured by information that they are gathering from Comalcalco and other sites in Mesoamerica. In any case, Comalcalco certainly has a lot of interesting things to see. These photos were taken on January 26, 2004 at about 12 noon. Today, the exposed remains of Comalcalco consist of two distinctive groups: the North Plaza Cluster, and the Great Acropolis. A third complex known as the East Acropolis, which lies east of the North Plaza and seems to be a small-scale version of the Great Acropolis, has not been excavated. Although the entire site extends some 700 to 1000 feet in all directions, the North Plaza and the Great Acropolis comprise the original ceremonial centre. The North Plaza is a large, open space with three mounds in the centre. Its longest axis runs east/west, and it is bounded on the north, south, and east sides by long platform mounds which supported temples, some of which have been partially restored. The western extremity is bounded by Temple 1, the largest pyramid at the site. We will begin our tour by visiting the North Plaza of Comalcalco Archaeological Site.