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The Temple of the Warriors, also known as Temple de los Guerreros, was supposedly built by the Itza civilization between the tenth and the twelfth century in the ancient city of Chichen Itza, Mexico. (See figure 1) Chichen Itza is located in the Mexican lowlands. The Itza supposedly occupied Chichen Itza at two different times, the first being from 495 A. D. to 692 A. D. and the second being from 948 A.
D. to 1204 A. D. The temple was built in the second occupation of Chichen Itza (Vargas, 1).
Tula, the ancient capital of the Toltec's gave most of the influence in architecture to the Itza's. The Temple of the Warriors is located on the east side of the ancient city near the Court of a Thousand Columns. (See figure 2) The temple was primarily used for sacrificial purposes and ceremonies were conducted to please the gods that they worshipped. Located directly inside of the temple is another temple known as the Buried Temple. The Temple of the Warriors was built directly over the top of the pre-existing one. In 1925, the Carnegie Institute discovered the Temple of the Warriors in the ancient ruin city of Chichen Itza. Ann Axtell Morris was one of the archeologists that took on the task of unearthing the Temple of the Warriors.
In her book Digging in the Yucatan, she describes the pain staking process of bringing the building back to the original state. Digging in the Yucatan is basically a primary source based off of archeological studies done during the time Morris was in Chichen Itza. In her book, Morris describes the artifacts pulled from the ruined structure, the rebuilding of the structure and the contributions of the excavation that she did on the Temple of the Warriors. This book was published in 1931, which means that the book was published before any more analysis could be done on the temple's inscriptions or hieroglyphics. Morris' book allowed a first hand insight into the excavation of the temple through the eyes of an archeologist that was on site during the unfolding of the hidden treasures.
In the book, Your Yucatan Guide, by Henry F. Godfrey. The book is basically a guide around the Yucatan but delves into the subject of the Temple of the Warriors. Throughout the selected pages, he describes the different artifacts and various aspects of the temple. This book should be considered a primary source because it is relying on the artifacts that are still present at the temple. It should also be considered a secondary source because the explanations he gives are his own and no reference is made to authority figures about what he is proclaiming.
Maya: The Riddle and Rediscovery of a Lost Civilization, a book by Charles Gallenkamp. Gallenkamp studied anthropology at the University of New Mexico and has been a leader of several archeological expeditions throughout the Southwest, Mexico, and Central America. He is the director of the Mayan Research Fund, a research associate of the Instituto Interamericano and an adviser to the Department of Anthropology of the Houston Museum of Natural History. Maya is considered a primary source since the author, Gallenkamp, is an expert on the Mayan culture and has been on many archeological digs throughout his lifetime. Since this book was published in 1959, some of his findings and interpretations might be a little out dated since more studies have been done on the ruins of the Temple of the Warriors. John S.
Henderson a Professor of Anthropology at Cornell University published a book, The World of the Ancient Maya, which gives a great overview of the Temple of the Warriors. His book is both a primary and secondary source based on archeology and literal research. It is a primary resource because Henderson is pulling information from the actual temple. It is also a secondary resource because Henderson incorporates his own analysis into points of the book. A website written by Dr. Eduardo Vargas entitled, Chichen Itza, is a primary source because it is based off of the temple and the ruined city which is all archeological research.
Another website that I found entitled Temple of the Warriors, Chichen Itza, is also a primary source. In this the author, who is not disclosed, describes the building and some of the different aspects that gives the temple a unique character. In Morris's book, Digging in the Yucatan she describes the process taken by the archeologists of the Carnegie Institute. From the accidental find to the final handing over of the Temple of the Warriors to the Mexican Government, her book covers much detail. Earl H. Morris, the husband to Ann Axtell Morris, discovered the Temple of the Warriors while watching over the excavation of the Court of a Thousand Columns.
He ventured over to a huge mound for that seemed to be attached to the Court. After pondering about the mound a few days, he gave the orders to start clearing it. (See figure 3) Within a few days, two columns were found and next to them were two stone rattle snake tails. They immediately realized that it was part of the Plumed Serpent because it was the symbol for the chief god of Chichen Itza. "His image is painted and carved upon temple walls, hundreds of times repeating gaping fanged jaws and feather-covered slimy curves" (Morris, 106). They dug to the bottom of the columns and found the two serpent heads in perfect condition. After many days of putting the tails back together and reconnecting them to the large columns, they had found the entrance to the top of the temple. (See figure 4) When the remainder of the temple was cleared of the rubble, they found a high petition wall with a narrow door, which led into an interior room. Behind the wall Morris found an inner sanctuary, which at one time must have contained the Altar of Sacrifice.
Not surprisingly, there was an altar smashed to bits and pieces but through much effort they were able to put the altar back to together. Nineteen little men supported the Atlantean altar. (See figure 5) On each side of the pyramid was a series of four terraces of alternating sloping and perpendicular zones. The zones were formally narrow bands, which encircled the pyramid. The bands were carved with hundreds of curious figures standing about two and a half feet tall.
They were reclining human figures, jaguars, eagles, and some curious half bear and half coyote creatures, which were each holding a human heart in its claws. At the end of the second year, in 1926 the archeologists found a column that they expected to find. (Morris) They went up the side of the pyramid and after digging seven feet down, they found a red polished floor. They started digging and found the buried temple. The sanctuary of the buried temple with exception of painted walls and colored sculptured columns, was quite bare. (Morris) (See figure 6) Towards the end of the excavation after four long exciting years, Earl Morris decided to try and find any burials located in side the temple.
The only burial that was found was outside the temple next to the grand staircase, which was a cremation pit. He was tapping around the floors of the buried temple when he heard a slight echo come from the floor. He broke the floor and lifted the huge heavy stone. At the center of the cavity lay a large spherical ball of dark jade polished as glass. This was one of the Z-Tuns or "light stones" which the old priests had used for prophecy. (Morris) Next to it was a piece of green apple jade carved to represent a human face and accompanying it were two more jade beads and strings of shells. (Morris) Underneath was a jar, which contained a turquoise mosaic.
The mosaic was nine inches in diameter and contained over three thousand pieces of turquoise. (See figure 7) From research done on the hieroglyphics it was determined the Buried Temple that was only in use for 15 years before they decided to build the Temple of the Warriors over the top of it. In Maya: The Riddle and Rediscovery of a Lost...
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Research essay sample on Temple Of The Warriors In Chichen Itza Mexico
