El Tajin Archaeological Ruins
Veracruz, Mexico
Travel Pictures And Photos Page Two

George And Audrey DeLange

"North Ballcourt" Looking South From The "Retaining Wall" Of "Tajin Chico"

El Tajin Archaeological Ruins, Veracruz, Mexico: OUR TOUR OF THE SITE ( Continued From Page One ). On top of the retaining wall, we followed the path to the right which leads to Building I, also called the "Palace of Art". Building I is a low platform built on an east-west axis and covered with a protective thatched roof. Along the outside of the structure we see a low stucco frieze of teeth (or triangles) interspersed with columns. We could see other decorations along the interior walls. Along the lower walls we could see a stucco frieze of more teeth and above the teeth we could see rows of calabash squash on stalks. Above this we could see light blue frescoes of vegetation. Other murals decorate the interior walls. Taking a short flight of steps to the east we walked up to a small plaza in the middle of Tajin Chico. The plaza's north side contains three civic structures. First is Building C, a three-tier platform with step-and-fret motifs set into niches. Then we see a colonnaded room which is decorated with murals on top of the platform. Archaeologists believe this structure may have been used for meetingsbetween El Tajin's ruler and his people. Then we see a wide staircase on Building C's west side which descends into a small plaza behind the Palace of Art. Looking to the north we see Building B, which is a two level residence. We then see a staircase which climbs into the building's interior where we saw a courtyard with fragments of six square columns. The entire structure was covered with a large wood and concrete roof. We could see another stair which rises to the second level and exits to the east. To the west of Building B we could see Building A, which is another, more elaborate residential complex. The entrance is on the south side. The stairs are in the center through a structure built to look like a temple staircase. This reminds us of the false stairs on many of the Rio Bec Region Mayan temples. From Building B our trail leds to the hilltop, where we saw an acropolis like complex surrounding the "Building of the Columns". It is thought that this was probably the palace of El Tajin's ruler. On the front of the "Building of the Columns" archaeologists found the famous columns carved with scenes of 13 Rabbit's victories in battle. Tourists are not allowed in this area. To the north of Building B we could see Building E. Inside is a flight of stairs that leads back down to the valley floor. We pass by some uncleared mounds, and emerge at the side of a large stone wall. This is the "Great Xicalcoliuhqui", also called "The Great Enclosure" It is a 360 meter wall shaped like a squared spiral. The wall is a narrow platform. We were told that the inner plaza is uncleared and if we were to follow the wall around, in the center we would see find two temple mounds and the two ballcourts. The "Great Enclosure" is thought to be the site of ritual activities concerning the ballgame. Due north to the base of Tajin Chico's terrace is the Great Ballcourt, also uncleared, which is the largest ballcourt at El Tajin. From here we walked back to the main entrance and watched the Voladores performing their flight.