Chichen Itza Buildings

The Most Important Buildings

Kukulcán Pyramid

It is 30 metres high and 55 m on each side at its base. The 365 days of the solar calendar are represented in the four staircases. Twice a year a beautiful phenomenon can be seen on the ramp of the north side of the pyramid which resembles the body of a snake. The snake, which appears due to shadows cast on the stairway, symbolizes the important God Kukulcán descending to earth to fertilize the soil. It is a very impressive event!

Ball Court

The largest court of all. Some 1200 ball courts have been found throughout Mesoamerica, none of which come close to the size of this court. Every time the game was played, a human sacrifice of one of the ballplayers resulted to honor the gods. Two types of sacrifices were carried out: beheading and extraction of the heart.

Temple of the Warriors

This is a good example of the Toltec influence in the Maya region. It is also called ‘Complex of the Thousand Columns' because of the huge quantity of columns they found. They were used to support a roof made of wooden rafter which subsequently collapsed in time.

Holy well or Cenote

Cenotes provided the drinking water for Chichen Itza. The Cenote located a small walk from the Kukulcán Pyramid was considered sacred. All kinds of objects were thrown into the well such as jewelry, precious objects, animals, and in the end also small children, to calm or thank the God of water and rain called ‘Chaac'.

Observatory

The only round observatory in all Mesoamerica is the one found at Chichen-Itza. Within its walls, all the important dates for the prediction of calendars, seasons and so on, were calculated. Known also as Caracol (Snail), on the inside of the building a spiral stairway has been built which symbolises entering the infinity.