Oxkintok

Oxkintoc (also Oxkintok ) is an important archaeological site of the Maya in Mexico. It is located on the Yucatan Peninsula in the state of Yucatán, approximately 70 kilometers south of Mérida, and about 5 kilometers east of the town Maxcanú. The meaning of the name is ambiguous: ox is in the Yucatecan Maya the numeral "three", children, the name for sun or day, while tok depending on pronunciation has several meanings.

• 6.1 CA -3
• 6.2 CA -5 and CA-6
• 6.3 CA-7
• 6.4 CA -9

History of Research

The first written mention dates back from the 16th century, when the Franciscan Alonso Ponce on a large part of Mexico comprehensive inspection tour Oxkintoc visited. His companion and secretary Antonio de Ciudad Real describes details of the ruins with some precision. The North American explorer John Lloyd Stephens. is an impressive portrayal of Satunsat building. Also Teobert painter, who visited the place in 1893, describes only a little more. The first detailed study made ​​Harry ED Pollock. Since 1986, the Spanish Archaeological Mission in Mexico worked in Oxkintoc, their results have been published in detail. Since 1994, worked for several years in Oxkintoc a large Mexican restoration program under Ricardo Velázquez.

The city

Oxkintoc is in many groups of buildings structured city. It lies on the southern slope of the hills, which limits the Puuc hills in the north. In the immediate vicinity there are further more extensive ruins zones, so that the boundaries of these is difficult. The individual groups today the names that have been assigned by the Spanish project and are reminiscent of well-known archaeologists, as well as traditional local names.

The importance of Oxkintoc results from the time position: so far a few early to be applied in the same localities are in the archaeological Puuc region only in the vicinity of Oxkintoc become known. Oxkintoc, characterized by the Notified of this place earliest phase of Puuc architecture, has a history of settlement, ranging from no later than 475 AD ( a monument with date ) to the Endklassik.

Satunsat

This building is unique in the Mayan culture. It has taken account of its peculiar shape early on the interest of the visitors, the suspected unexpected secrets in it. More recently, the third floor has been partially restored again.

The Satunsat occupies an area of about 20 × 10 meters. It is in a slightly rising terrain to the east, so that its western side has one floor more. The only entrance to the building is located in the middle of completely unadorned western facade. It is equipped with 1.5 meters of a very low and crosses a good 1 meter thick wall, like all walls are unusually thick.

The first and second floors each have four parallel courses in north-south direction, which are connected by narrow door-type transitions near the center. The transitions are relatively low and have the typical getreppte vault of the early Oxkintoc style on. On the first floor there are the south and north end of the building two courses in East-West direction, but who connect only to the first or the last of the parallel passages. Of these, slim lead to corners continuous stairs with very high levels to the level of the second floor. So you can reach every room of the second floor in two ways. About the only east- west trending corridor of the second floor leads to a multiple winding staircase into a very small room on the third level. Because the exterior walls are no longer available, can not be recognized if and how they had access to the three long north -south running rooms of the third floor of this small space. These spaces were no longer subject to the need to carry the heavy weight of overlying structures and are therefore kept broad.

The original function of the Satunsat is in the dark. Several numerous transverse through the walls of the second floor ventilation channels are just that at certain days around the equinoxes for moments of light falls into the innermost corridors, so that the presumption of an astronomical function is obvious. There seems to be a later change of purpose when sacrifices were buried in the floor of the corridors and dead-end corridors were bricked to make burials there.

Group Dzib

From this consisting of relatively small buildings group of buildings just north of the Satunsat only the ball court is probably the Säulchenstil angehöriges been building ( on the northern edge of the group ) and south of it excavated. Also remarkable is the access to this group grantors also archway on the northern edge (which is not connected to a building) and to which a ramp leads up.

May Group

The group is like the other groups on a one to two meters above the surrounding terrain raised platform with an irregular degree. The pyramid occupies approximately the middle of this platform to the north, southwest and southeast close enclosed by low buildings on farms.

Pyramid- MA-1

The group includes the highest and most important pyramid of the city. The coordinates given in the header correspond to this pyramid. Its history is unique insight into the development of the Puuc style and the importance of Oxkintoc in this process.

Originally, in the early Klassikum, today's pyramid (Building 1 MA ) was a two-story building. This building has remained largely intact get inside the pyramid and was to explore as much by spending from 1987 to 1990, that its details are well known. This first building corresponded to a very large extent the Satunsat: It had two floors with narrow, vein-like rooms that were like there low and the characteristic getreppten vault had. The first floor had four, maybe five of these rooms, which were arranged in east-west direction on the two sides ever was a space at right angles over the entire depth of the building. Since the excavation of these spaces could not fully expose in order not to jeopardize the stability of the entire building is not known how the connection between the individual rooms was ensured. In analogy to Satunsat one can assume that this is done by short connecting passages near the middle of the rooms, where the excavation has failed to penetrate. Likewise, the initial connection to the second floor is not known, but there is a built-in later steps. The second floor consisted of two long rooms in east-west direction, which were wider, but had the same vault construction. The greater width was possible because Above were no further constructions. On both sides, at least had the front room a narrow entrance from the outside of a rotating platform on the roof of the underlying transverse space. The facade of this structure corresponds to the Early Oxkintoc style: on a smooth wall without base dominates the upper panel, a little before. It is slightly inwardly inclined and carries a wide framing a slightly sunken area and recalls in this respect to variations of the Tablero - Talud system of Teotihuacan.

About 150 years later, in the middle Klassikum, a radical rebuilding took place. The lower parts of the old facade were removed and erected two stages of a pyramid-like building. Since this like a coat designed to the older building, had to its stability can be increased, so the inner rooms and corridors were filled with rubble. Before the pyramid stairs was laid, the approximately the width of the temple building, which was built on the upper platform of the pyramid. It consisted of two parallel areas located one behind the other. The front space had three inputs. Still later there was a further refinement of the pyramid. On both sides of the stairs small, single-room buildings were built on two levels, each of which had three entrances, separated with wall panels. Front of the steps of a small altar -like pedestal was.

Northern farm

MA -8

Under this designation, the long, hall-like building is understood the northwest of the pyramid is directly and frames the courtyard to the west. Buildings of this type are to be set typologically late.

MA -9

The long period of use of the group is occupied by a building of five rooms, which have a division that rarely found except in Uxmal in the Puuc region, but is the standard pattern in the Chenes style. Behind a row of four spaces ( the number is actually uncommon straight, but is concealed by five inputs) is centrally located, the fifth room, which is accessible only through the distant past. The façade (although the upper half of the wall is not preserved), the building of the Puuc colonnettes - style: the two - or dreigliederige base with a sunken middle band of relatively high small columns, the smooth lower wall surface, interrupted by groups of three small columns and 7 two groups of small columns on both sides of the central input, while the wall of the back side is smooth. In the tripartite middle cornice lies with geböschtem lower band, sunken Säulchenreihe and smooth upper band are unique. Then there are the typical three the entire wall height engaging small columns at the corners. It is striking that the projecting backwards fifth room was apparently shown at a later date and has a base without Säulchenband.

Western Court

Of the buildings framing the Court's only the low first stone rows of the walls have been preserved. In the middle of the square are two rectangular altar platforms.

Group Ah Canul

East of the group May is designated as Ah Canul platform, which occupies a somewhat larger area. The internal structure is completely different: The Group has three pyramids similar to MA-1, however, the courts are less pronounced and smaller. The pyramids are the oldest buildings of this group, only the building CA -3 is a bit older.

CA -3

Probably the oldest building (probably 300 to 400 AD), the group is at its extreme northern edge and differs also in the orientation of the other buildings. It consists of three relatively long vein-like areas in east-west direction, of which the two southern must be entered only by a laterally upstream in western transverse room with entrance from the west. From the south, a staircase led to a second very small floor from which no traces remain today. Wall design and facade of the building to have the early Oxkintoc style.

CA -5 and CA-6

Near the southern edge of the platform are the two connected buildings that document the transition to the Proto - Puuc style, the building CA-5 is something created earlier. It shows a symmetrical self-contained layout which consists of three long rooms in east-west direction, with the face side is in the north, where three entrances lead into the outer space of the three passages, offset from the outer, in cause the inner space is divided by a transverse wall into two spaces. The southern room again has three entrances from the outside, but no direct connection to the middle room. A connection of the two outer spaces is however ensured by the two perpendicularly extending spaces at both ends of the building, which also have passages to the two outer spaces adjacent to an input from outside. In this pattern, the combination of long rooms with offset connections to each other and accessibility via transverse rooms on the lateral sides of the building, the concept of Satunsat and the first building of the later pyramid MA- 1 mirrors. Here, however, no additional floor has been set up, which is why interior stairs are missing.

Referred to as CA-6 later constructed building includes east in the manner to that described that the original exterior entrance of the eastern cross the room now opens laterally into one of the three front rooms of the new building, which has only two rows of rooms. Following the symmetry striving to open five entrances to the north, leading to three rooms (the center also has three inputs). From each of the rooms operates a passage offset from the input, three rear spaces. Only one had an exit to the south. At the eastern end of the building is a small, transverse space, which has a centrally located entrance and a passage in a small room in the second row. This latter passage is spanned by a stone door beam, which has found a secondary use. This, however, is not completely preserved in its hieroglyphic text dates in the Long Count is approximately the year 476 In a similar lintel over one of the passages of the beginning, who also includes a date of the Long Count is missing. The surviving text begins with an indication of the count of the lunar cycles, isolated, no further information has, and a text probably said " then the lintel of his house was used ". Preliminary readings also make a dynastic relationship to the remote locality El Resbalón likely. The ruler of this place Hok ' Mah Balam would therefore was the Son is unnamed ruler of Oxkintoc. And whose mother is known (her name is with Jaguar of water hyacinths translated) and their generationally about appropriate rulers A, which is called in inscriptions in Oxkintoc and Resbalón.

The facade of this building was decorated over the simple average cornice with a thick layer of stucco ornaments. From the found broken remnants can be concluded on animal and human figures.

CA-7

East of the medium-sized farm, adjoining the above two buildings to the east, there is a remarkable building, which stands out for the inputs designed in bas-relief columns. Also known as the " Palacio Chich " designated building is unusually large with 11 indoors on a level for Oxkintoc. The floor plan is rather conventional and architecturally connecting the east and west in the front of the building courtyards. Three rows of North-South aligned spaces are bounded at both ends by two transverse spaces. These rooms, in contrast to the older buildings but no longer the role of liaison between the long rooms. These are also divided up to the westernmost by transverse walls into three rooms. The two sides have connecting doors to one another, so that one can pass from one to the other side of the building. The space on the western front is not divided, it has side passages to the first of the side rooms, the others are accessible only from the outside. The facade has been preserved only in fragments. Nevertheless, it can be stated that the " Palacio Ch'ich " undoubtedly belongs to the transition between the early Puuc style and the Säulchenstil, because it combines the characteristics of both, and also the found during the excavations ceramics belongs to the Middle Klassikum and later times to. For early Puuc style, the divided with figural carved pillars inputs fit in the West, which have the average input two, depending on the side a pillar. The facade is divided into a base obtained from a projecting stone row and the bottom panel which is decorated individually standing between the doors with small columns and stone mosaic decor in vertical strips - typical of the Säulchenstil. Higher parts of the facade are not obtained. The vault construction is too far developed for the early Puuc style.

CA -9

The buildings are located at the extreme eastern edge of the group. There are two separate buildings (which was not yet known in the allocation of numbering), each of which has simple rows of rooms. The eastern building with four rooms in the center has a passage bow. This building is of little columns variant of the Puuc style attributable, as the base for this style branches, the typical three-unit image with a sunken middle band, alternating in the smooth section with groups of four small columns. Because of the strong destruction of the reconstruction of the higher parts of the building and the arch is hypothetical. The northern building with 5 rooms to the south appears to be stylistically to be set earlier, because it has no or only a minimal base on. The cornice seems to have at least owned a sloping band after reconstruction, which does not correspond with the other findings. Note the oversized wall stones on the western side wall.

Chronology

Oxkintoc falls in many respects from the scope of the Puuc culture. In archaeological and architectural terms, it is the oldest known major settlement of the room. Oxkintoc is eponymous for the classic Puuc preceding architectural style (Early Oxkintoc ). It is characterized among other things by unadorned façade, large, irregular wall stones, simple average cornice with a single projecting stone row. The arches are made ​​up of flat plate-like stones without further processing, which are anchored obliquely upwards in the masonry form (stone vault location ) and a smooth surface. Partially created a getreppte surface. In addition, enter into buildings and building complexes Oxkintoc also from all later phases of Puuc architecture, Uxmal except the late style.

Oxkintoc is one of the longest continuously inhabited places of the room, because here there are also the earliest inscriptions which carry data 476-507. On the other hand, there are also inscriptions dating from the 8th and 9th centuries.