San Lorenzo Tenochtitlan
Olmec Archaeological Ruins
Veracruz Mexico
Travel Pictures And Photos

George And Audrey DeLange

San Lorenzo Tenochtitlan is located about 35 km SE of Acayucan in the hot, swampy lowlands along the Gulf of Mexico, just south of Veracruz, near the small town of Tenochititlan. It is the oldest of the three large Olmec ceremonial centers in Tabasco and Veracruz. One of these sites is at La Venta in Tabasco, the other two are at San Lorenzo in Veracruz and Laguna de los Cerros in Veracruz.. San Lorenzo was at its height of power between about 1200 BC. - 900 BC. At that time period it is estimated that it may have had a population of about 10,500 - 17,500 people. San Lorenzo was built on a natural plateau that was modified by building large artificial ridges. San Lorenzo was continually occupied from about 1500 B.C. to 400 B.C. San Lorenzo had a very dramatic end to its power in about 900 BC. At that time almost all of its large sculptures were defaced and/or destroyed. Many were dragged out to the ridges near the city and they were covered with earth. One very important feature of San Lorenzo was that it had a very elaborate drainage system constructed of stone carved pipes with lids. Some of these are in the photos below. The other major characteristic of the sculpture work at San Lorenzo is the large Olmec heads that weigh as much as 40 tons and stand up to 3 meters high. The stone used to create these heads was carried by sledges and rafts to the city from the volcanic Tuxtla Mountains, about 60 miles away. Ten of the large Olmec heads and many other artifacts were found here. Most of these are now in museums throughout Mexico. The best seem to be at the Olmec Museum in Jalapa (Xalapa), Mexico. Some of the artifacts were of large stone thrones with sculptures of rulers carved on the sides of the thrones. These were carved from basalt imported from the Sierra de los Tuxlas. Another interesting black stone tool is found in the area of San Lorenzo. One researcher, Roberto Velázquez Cabrera, thinks the stone is made of Ilminite (FeTiO3), a natural ore for titanium! He thinks the stone may be some sort of tool for generating sound waves. Be sure to have a good deet mosqueto repellant on when visiting the area. The GPS coordinates to the museum are: 19 degrees 26.60 minutes N, 99 degrees 5.60 minutes West. The caretakers keep the grass and weeds nicely cut and trimmed. The museum and restrooms are clean.