Tula (Mesoamerican site)

20°3′50.96″N 99°20′26.89″W / 20.0641556°N 99.3408028°W / 20.0641556; -99.3408028

Tula
Atlantean columns on Pyramid B in form of Toltec warriors.
Tula (Mesoamerican site) is located in Mesoamerica
Tula (Mesoamerican site)
Location within Mesoamerica
LocationTula de Allende, Hidalgo, Mexico
Coordinates20°3′50.96″N 99°20′26.89″W / 20.0641556°N 99.3408028°W / 20.0641556; -99.3408028
History
PeriodsLate Preclassic to Late Classic
Map

Tula (Otomi: Mämeni) is a Mesoamerican archeological site, which was an important regional center which reached its height as the capital of the Toltec Empire between the fall of Teotihuacan and the rise of Tenochtitlan. It has not been well studied in comparison to these other two sites, and disputes remain as to its political system, area of influence and its relations with contemporary Mesoamerican cities, especially with Chichen Itza. The site is located in the city of Tula de Allende in the Tula Valley, in what is now the southwest of the Mexican state of Hidalgo, northwest of Mexico City. The archeological site consists of a museum, remains of an earlier settlement called Tula Chico as well as the main ceremonial site called Tula Grande. The main attraction is the Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl, which is topped by four 4-metre-high (13 ft) basalt columns carved in the shape of Toltec warriors. Tula fell around 1150, but it had significant influence in the following Aztec Empire, with its history written about heavily in myth. The feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl is linked to this city, whose worship was widespread from central Mexico to Central America at the time the Spanish arrived.