El Tajín is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site near the city of Papantla, in the state of Veracruz, Mexico. The term Pre-Columbian is used to refer to the cultures of the New World in the era before significant European influence. ... Papantla is a city in the northern part of the state of Veracruz, Mexico. ... Veracruz is the name of a city and a state in Mexico. ...

Pyramid of the Niches before restoration; 1913 photo

The city El Tajín was the capital of the Totonac state. Tajín means city or place of thunder in the Totonac language, and is believed to have been one of the names for the Totonac god of thunder, lightning and rain. Pyramid of the Nitches, El Tajín, from February 1913 National Geographic magazine. ... Pyramid of the Nitches, El Tajín, from February 1913 National Geographic magazine. ... The Totonac are a Native American people in the state of Veracruz, Mexico. ... Thunder is the sound of the shockwave caused when lightning instantly heats the air around it to up to 30 000 °C (54 000 °F). ... The term God is used to designate a Supreme Being, however, there are countless definitions of God. ... Thunder is the sound of the shockwave caused when lightning instantly heats the air around it to up to 30 000 °C (54 000 °F). ... Multiple cloud-to-ground and cloud-to-cloud lightning strokes are observed during a night-time thunderstorm. ... Rain is a form of precipitation, other forms of which include snow, sleet, hail, and dew. ...

History of El Tajín

Construction of ceremonial buildings at El Tajín began about the 1st century. Early classic Tajín shows influence of Teotihuacan; early postclassic shows considerable Toltec influence. Construction continued to about the start of the 13th century, at which time the city was conquered and burned by Chichimec invaders. The site continued to be occupied after this by a smaller population, but no new large construction projects were initiated. The site was completely abandoned with the arrival of the Spanish conquerors in the early 16th century. (1st century BC - 1st century - 2nd century - other centuries) The 1st century was that century which lasted from 1 to 99. ... Teotihuacan is the largest Pre-Columbian archeological site in the Americas. ... The Toltecs (or Toltec or Tolteca) were a Pre-Columbian Native American people who dominated much of central Mexico between the 10th and 12th century AD. Their language, Nahuatl, was also spoken by the Aztecs. ... (12th century - 13th century - 14th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 13th century was that century which lasted from 1201 to 1300. ... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ...

The abandoned site was overgrown with forest. In 1785 engineer Diego Ruiz visited the site and published the first description of the site. In the early 19th century it was visited by Guillermo Dupaix, Alexander von Humboldt, and Carlos Nebel, who published additional accounts. 1785 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Friedrich Heinrich Alexander, Baron von Humboldt, ( September 14, 1769, Berlin– May 6, 1859, Berlin), was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister, philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt. ...

The first archeological excavation of the site was made by Jose Garcia Payon from 1943 through 1963. The Mexican Institute of Anthropology & History has made additional restoration to buildings at the site since the 1980s. Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ...

Monuments

The ceremonial center of the site is covers only about 1 km square, but there are mostly unexcavated remains of subsidiary buildings extending for a considerable distance beyond.

The ceremonial center has number of temple-pyramids, palaces, and several courts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame. Great Ball Court at Chichén Itzá A Ball Court Goal, Chichén Itzá Ball court marker, from the Maya site of Chinkultic. ...

The site's most famous building is the Pyramid of the Niches. The step pyramid of 6 terraces is some 60 feet high. The size is only medium as Mesoamerican pyramids go, but the architecture is creates a striking and visually pleasing effect. The terraces are of well cut stone froming a series of 365 niches. A staircase rises up the pyramid's east side. Originally the pyramid was topped by a temple, but little remains of this. Mesoamerica is the region extending from central Mexico south to the northwestern border of Costa Rica that gave rise to a group of stratified, culturally related agrarian civilizations spanning an approximately 3,000-year period before the European discovery of the New World by Columbus. ...

A number of the buildings have carved relief on them, and the site also has some free standing stone stelae. Many of the sculptures depict the ritual ballgame and rituals bloodletting by the elite.

The site is now a tourism destination, has a moderate sized museum. A tourist boat travels the River Seine in Paris, France Tourism can be defined as the act of travel for the purpose of recreation, and the provision of services for this act. ... A museum is typically a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education enjoyment, the tangible and intangible evidence of people and their environment. ...