Sacred Cenote — Attraction in Yucatán

Chichen Itza The Sacred Cenote. The Yucatan Peninsula is a limestone plain and water permeates to the underground forming rivers, streams and pools known as cenotes. Cenotes can be completely covered, have a sinkhole or be completely exposed as is the case with the Sacred Cenote. It resembles a small lake or pond; 60 meters (197 feet) in diameter with steep cliffs to the sides that drop 27 meters (89 feet) to the green waters below.

Water to the Yucatan Mayans was very sacred and Chac the Rain God who was believed to live at the bottom of this cenote, was feared and worshipped because he produced drought and the life-force of water. As an entry to the underworld they believed they could speak to their ancestors and the underworld Gods by offering sacrifices at the cenote. They would ask for good rains and harvests, health and fortune. Priests offered rituals at the temples using the sacred water.

The large Sacred Cenote was considered very important to the wellbeing of the Mayan people and as part of their religious culture offered sacrifices to the Rain God as a form of Worship. It should be remembered that the name Chichén Itza translates to “At the mouth of the well of the Itza” referring to this cenote.

The Sacred Cenote was a place of pilgrimage for the ancient Maya as most of the objects that were offered were not native to the Yucatan and pilgrims must have travelled great distances to offer their precious objects to Chac. When the cenote was dredged they found numerous precious objects including gold, jade, shell, wood, obsidian and wooden objects which were preserved in the water. There were also skeletons of men and children with wounds consistent with sacrifice. Young women were the most common sacrifice presumably because they had power in their beauty.

The Sacred Cenote was used exclusively for religious purposes and potable water was take from other cenotes located throughout the city.

Note: This is a perfect place to grab a bottle of water or use the restrooms at the...

Amezing... An amazing adventure. Enter deep into the jungle of the Yucatan peninsula and dive into the beautiful underwater cave. Mexico has many Cenotes and each one is worth visiting. You can keep your excursion to the ruins in Tulum and visit the Cenotes by a travel agency in Cancun or Playa del Carmen. They will take you from the hotel with a small clean van with air conditioning and a guide that will show you and explain everything you need and at lunch you will taste delicious Mexican food. Swimming in Cenotes is a unique experience and...

Der Cenote Sagrado ist fast kreisrund und hat senkrecht abfallende Wände. Es handelt sich um eine Doline. Über Jahrhunderte wähnten die Mayas hier den Eingang zur Unterwelt und benutzten diesen natürlichen Brunnen nicht als Trinkwasserreservoir sondern als Platz für rituelle Opferungen und als Wallfahrtsziel. Ein Schwitzbad am Rande des Gewässers dürfte zur rituellen Reinigung gedient haben. In Zeiten der Trockenheit warf man lebende Menschen und wertvolle Gegenstände für die Götter, vor allem für den Regengott Chaac, dessen Wohnort man hier vermutete, in den Brunnen. Der Archäologe Edward H. Thompson untersuchte mit Hilfe eines Baggers Anfang des 20. Jahrhunderts den Grund der Cenote. Gefunden wurden die Skelette von 50 Menschen sowie zahlreiche Gegenstände aus Keramik, Stein, Gold, Kupfer, Jade und Obsidian. Forschungen in den 1960er Jahren, die neue Tiefen erschlossen, brachten weitere 4000 Objekte ähnlicher Art, aber auch Kautschuk und Holzhandpuppen sowie Menschen- und Tierknochen zutage. Lange Zeit wurde angenommen, dass die Maya Jungfrauen in denCenote warfen. Neue Untersuchungen haben dies jedoch nicht bestätigt, da 64 % der Knochenfunde von kleinen Kindern bis zu drei Jahren und nur 36 % von in der Mehrzahl männlichen Erwachsenen stammen. Der Cenote hat einen Durchmesser von 60 Meter und seine Wände ragen 22 Meter über dem Wasserspiegel empor. Als größte Tiefe wurden bisher 82 Meter gemessen. Das Wasser ist nicht trinkbar. Die grüne Farbe wird durch Algen erzeugt. Chichén Itzá verdankt diesem Cenote seine Entstehung und seinen Namen. Er bedeutet „Am Rande des...