Tetzcotzinco
Archeological site
Tetzcotzinco
A place of great beauty, popularly known as “Nezahualcoyotl’s Baths” (1421-1521 AD). Designed by the famous poet king of Texcoco, it is said he came here to fast and meditate. Remarkable for its water works (aqueducts, pools and canals).
This site lies northeast of the city of Texcoco. It forms part of the territory that in the pre-Hispanic period was called Acolhuacan, which extended towards the present-day states of Tlaxcala, Puebla and Morelos.
The region’s complex history is recorded in various documents from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. For example, the accounts of Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxóchitl tell us that the people of Xólotl, the Chichimec chieftain who arrived in the basin of Mexico, sent his son Nopaltzin to explore the eastern territory of that zone, where he passed through Tetzcotzinco on his journey. The historian also describes events which involved rulers descended from Xólotl, such as Quinatzin, Lord of the Region, who died in Tetzcotzinco itself. Moreover, in the times of Techotlalatzin, the city “used to run from Tezcutzinco to Ostotícpac”. On another occasion, Nezahualcóyotl hid in the forest of Tetzcotzinco when pursued by the Tepanecs. Years later, he forged an alliance with the region’s cities after overthrowing the Tepanecs ruled by Maxtla. According to these and other historical sources, this height of this settlement’s splendor came under the rule of Nezahualcóyotl, Lord of Texcoco, to whom the construction of its hydraulic and architectural works is attributed.
Indeed, Tetzcotzinco forms part of a complex hydraulic system supplied with water from mountain springs. The Acolhua conveyed water through canals and aqueducts, which they raised by filling in the land between hills to keep the water level. These embankments supporting the canals were constructed with stone cemented with mud, whilst a mixture of sand, lime and tezontle gravel was used for the canals themselves. The canals were then plastered with stucco to make them impermeable. Another characteristic of this site is that the rooms, pilasters and canals, as well as its sculptural elements, were carved from rock. These are distributed between Tetzcotzinco and the western side of Metécatl Hill.
In the colonial period, the site was destroyed as part of the process of religious imposition. However, various architectural complexes remain. These are known chiefly by the following names given to them by the local people: the Throne, Road, King's Bath, Palace, Queen's Bath, Concubines' Bath, Plaza or Courtyard of the Dances, Temple of Tlaloc, the Place of Worship or The Gods, Spring L, Aqueduct, Spring A and Reservoir H. There are also petroglyphs, as well as anthropomorphic and zoomorphic sculptures.
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El Trono
Platform of three bodies, with an enclosure in the superior part that is completely excavated in the hillside.
El Trono
Platform of three bodies, with an enclosure in the superior part that is completely excavated in the hillside. In the south wall, presiding over the room, a set of carved elements composed of a small platform is preserved, in the center of which stands out a component that cannot be precisely defined, since it was almost completely destroyed. However, there is evidence that this central group was framed by a quadrangular high relief. In the 1980s, the remains of a motif painted in blue were still preserved. It is important to note that it is built in front of the aqueduct that connects the two hills.
Templo oriente o Patio de las Danzas
Located on the western slope of the hill, it is composed of platforms, squares and gives access to the top. In the center of the upper part there are remains of a bench or seat carved into the hillside, as well as a cave.
Templo de Tláloc
Set that is formed around the top of the hill on the east side of the hill Tetzcotzinco, where there are representations in relief of the god Tlaloc. In addition, during the excavations, elements related to this deity were detected.
Templo de Tláloc
Set that is formed around the top of the hill on the east side of the hill Tetzcotzinco, where there are representations in relief of the god Tlaloc. In addition, during the excavations, elements related to this deity were detected. On the slope of the Metecatl or Tepetan hill, the system of canals, tubs on platforms (some of them with rooms) and the aqueduct, which is 180 m long and has a height of 7 m in the center, can be observed. It was built to maintain the water level between the Metecatl and Tetzcotzinco hills.
Los Dioses
Architectural group that shelters the remains of two personages sculpted in the north hillside, of which the feet are conserved; it is possible to appreciate strips of huaraches and mantles, as well as a fragment of headdress. These personages were probably destroyed during the colonial period.
Los Dioses
Architectural group that shelters the remains of two personages sculpted in the north hillside, of which the feet are conserved; it is possible to appreciate strips of huaraches and mantles, as well as a fragment of headdress. These personages were probably destroyed during the colonial period. On the floor there are remains of the headdress of a personage. The access to the complex is through a series of carved staircases.
Baño del Rey
Architectural complex with a platform that gives access to a tub carved in a rock, flanked by a sculpture representing a wall. Ixtlixochitl describes it as follows ...
Baño del Rey
Architectural complex with a platform that gives access to a tub carved in a rock, flanked by a sculpture representing a wall. Ixtlixochitl describes it as follows ... “another pool, and in the rock carved the coat of arms and name of the city of Tenayocan that was the head of empire of the Chichimecas”.
El Palacio
This complex is accessed through stairways carved into the hill. These stairways lead to sets of platforms, patios and remains of rooms with stucco floors.
La Calzada
Circuit that surrounds the hill and leads to the different architectural complexes. On the south side there are remains of canals built with stone, stucco or carved in stone blocks, which discharged the waters to the hillside.
El Baño de la Reina
It is an architectural complex that has a bathtub partially carved in the rock; it has an access stairway, canals and drains. The remains of a frog's body are preserved on the shore above the platform. Ixtlixóchitl describes this complex as follows: “...
El Baño de la Reina
It is an architectural complex that has a bathtub partially carved in the rock; it has an access stairway, canals and drains. The remains of a frog's body are preserved on the shore above the platform. Ixtlixóchitl describes this complex as follows: “... there were three pools of water, and in the middle one there were three frogs sculpted and carved in the same rock, which meant the great lagoon, and the frogs were the heads of the empire”.
