Monte Alban Archaeological Ruins
Oaxaca Mexico
Travel And Tour Photos And Pictures

George And Audrey DeLange

Monte Alban is built at the junction of three broad valleys, across from the Atoyac stream, lays a series of large hills. The largest of these hills is nearly 400 meters above sea level. It was on the top of this mountain, which the Zapotecs leveled off and built into a great ceremonial city in about the year 500 ad. This center once ruled the entire region. The city is now known as Monte Alban. Monte Alban, or "White Mountains" in Spanish, was formerly called Danibaan (Sacred Mountain). No visit to Oaxaca can be considered complete without visiting Monte Alban. There were many beautiful white blossomed trees called "Tree Morning Glory," Ipomoea arborescens, growing in the area. These trees are also called, Palo del Muerto, Palo Santo Trees, or Trompillo. I did contact Dr. Claudio Delgadillo Moya; Chairman of the Department Of Botany at the Instituto de Biologia, UNAM and one of the botanists on his staff, Rosalinda Medina, suggested that the tree is either Ipomoea arborescens or Ipomoea murucoides, which is native of Oaxaca. Ipomoea murucoides is also known locally as Pajaro Bobo or Quauhzahautl. It reaches a height of about 15 feet. The reason for the doubt as to which tree it was, is that my photos did not show the part of the tree that she needed to see in order to make an exact identification.