Mitla

Mitla
/meet"lah/, n.
the ruins of a Zapotec Indian city near Oaxaca, Mexico, yielding elaborate remains of temples and other artifacts.

* * *

Village and archaeological site, Oaxaca state, southern Mexico.

It lies at an elevation of 4,855 ft (1,480 m), surrounded by the mountains of the Sierra Madre del Sur. It was established as a sacred burial site by the Zapotec, who used it until с AD 900. The Mixtec moved down from northern Oaxaca sometime between 900 and 1500 and took possession of Mitla. The modern village, composed of thatched huts and adobe houses, serves as a base for the study of the ruins.

* * *

▪ archaeological site, Mexico
      Mesoamerican archaeological site, Oaxaca state, southern Mexico. One of Mexico's best known ruins, Mitla lies at an elevation of 4,855 ft (1,480 m) on the eastern edge of one of several cold, high valleys surrounded by the mountains of the Sierra Madre del Sur, 24 mi (38 km) southeast of Oaxaca city. It is generally believed that Mitla (Nahuatl: Place of the Dead) was established as a sacred burial site long before the Christian Era, probably by the Zapotecs (Zapotec), whose influence was predominant until about AD 900. Between 900 and 1500 the Mixtecs moved down from northern Oaxaca and took possession of Mitla; it is the Mixtec influence that is most pronounced on the existing ruins. The Spaniards arrived at Mitla in 1521, and the first European account of the area was given by Diego García de Palacio in 1576.

      The archaeological zone of Mitla includes five main groups of structures—Grupo de las Columnas (Columns Group), Grupo de las Iglesias (Churches Group), Grupo del Arroyo (Arroyo Group), Grupo de los Adobes (Adobe Group), and Grupo del Sur (Southern Group)—of which only the first two had been fully excavated and restored by the early 1980s. Each group has several rectangular patios (some connected by long, winding passages and others separate) bordered by long, narrow rooms. The patios in the Grupo de los Adobes and those in the Grupo del Sur are also bordered by rooms, as well as by stepped pyramids.

      The method of above-ground wall construction appears to have been the same for all groups: a core of mud and stone covered with plaster or well-cut trachyte. The door frames are decorated with mosaics of intricately worked small stones perfectly fitted into stepped fret (geometric) patterns. Cruciform lithic tombs have been discovered beneath both the Grupo de las Columnas and the Grupo del Sur.

      The modern village of Mitla, composed mainly of thatched huts and adobe houses situated on the hillside below the ruins, is the operation base for the Regional Studies Centre of the Universidad de las Americas. The Museo Frissell de Arte Zapoteca (Frissell Museum), located in the village, contains a collection of artifacts from the state of Oaxaca.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Mitla — Lyobáa Un edificio en el Grupo de las Columnas Nombre: Zona arqueológica de Mitla Ubicación Oaxaca …   Wikipedia Español

  • Mitla — es una zona arqueológica localizada en el estado mexicano de Oaxaca. La palabra mitla es de origen náhuatl y deriva del vocablo mictlán, que significa Lugar de los muertos o Inframundo . En lengua zapoteca el lugar se denomina liobaa, que tiene… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Mitla — Mitla, Dorf im mexicanischen Staate Oaxaca, auf dem 5000 Fuß hohen Plateau von Mixtecapan; Ackerbau, Wollweberei; 2000 Ew. Hier waren zur Zeit der spanischen Eroberung die Paläste des Oberpriesters u. die Begräbnisse zapotekischer Fürsten u.… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Mitla — (Miguitlan, eigentlich Mictlan, »Totenstadt«), Dorf im Distrikt Tlacolula des mexikan. Staates Oajaca, 1650 m ü. M., am Ende eines bergumschlossenen Hochtales, mit berühmten Ruinen der alten zapotekischen Stadt Yoo paa oder Liao baa (»Ort des… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Mitla — (Mictlan), heilige Stadt der Zapoteken (s.d.) im mexik. Staate Oaxaca; Ruinen von Tempelpyramiden und Palästen …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Mitla — This article is about the pre Columbian settlement and archaeological site. For the modern day town and municipality, see San Pablo Villa de Mitla. For the mountain pass in the Sinai Desert, see Mitla Pass. Prehistoric Caves of Yagul and Mitla in …   Wikipedia

  • Mitla — Palast in Mitla Mitla ist ein Ort im mexikanischen Bundesstaat Oaxaca, der für seine präkolumbischen, mesoamerikanischen Bauten berühmt ist. Inhaltsverzeichnis …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Mitla — 16°55′N 96°24′W / 16.917, 96.4 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Mitla — Mịtla,   archäologischer Fundort südwestlich von Oaxaca, Mexiko, entstanden um 900 als Kulturzentrum der Zapoteken, im 13./14. Jahrhundert von den Mixteken besetzt und ausgebaut. Um 1500 war Mitla wieder dem zapotek. Herrscher tributpflichtig.… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Mitla (cryptid) — Mitla Creature Grouping Cryptid Sub grouping mammal Data First reported 1914 Country Bolivia Region Mad …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”