Tulúm is the most visited of the Maya sites in the Yucatán and not only because
of its proximity to Cancún. Although the ruins are structurally less impressive than
Chichen Itza or Uxmal and much less extensive, they have the azure Caribbean as a backdrop
- a startling contrast and heaven for the photographer or artist. Because the area is
small and there is comparatively little climbing involved, you can gain a fair
appreciation of Tulúm in a couple of hours.
| As
recently as the 1960's the site was accessible only by sea |
The most important
contribution to your enjoyment here is your arrival time - the site is open between 8am
and 5pm and from around 9am as many as 80 tour buses a day will deposit holidaymakers from
Cancún and cruise ships outside the gates. Arriving at 8am is best, otherwise wait until
the end of the day.
In 1994 access to the site was
redesigned so that cars and coaches could no longer park adjacent to the ruins, and a new
car park was built about 10 minutes walk away. A shuttle now provides easy access (at a
fee) for those unable or unwilling to tackle the flat and paved pathway. The modern and
shiny-clean visitors' center at the car park houses numerous souvenir shops in addition to
cafeterias, refreshment stalls, toilets and telephones.
The huge number of tourists
visiting Tulúm today belies the fact that as recently as the 1960s the site was
accessible only by sea. In fact this was how the Spanish came across the city during Juan
de Grijalva's expedition of 1518, at which time it was - uniquely among the Maya cities -
still inhabited. Grijalva reports of the fortifications and buildings painted red white
and blue, and compares the city favorably in size and stature to Seville.
Imposing as it may have been,
Tulúm was built around 1200AD as the Mayan civilization declined and lacks the elegance
of earlier structures. For instance, whilst earlier Maya buildings typically had vaulted
roofs, the ones in Tulúm were often flat and have consequently fallen much sooner. The
layout of the site is unusually structural, with parallel streets surrounded by walls
originally five meters high and seven meters deep. Most of the walls can still be seen,
indeed the present day entrance to the ruins is as it was in ancient times, through a gate
on western side of the fortifications.
There are three major structures
of interest: El Castillo (the tower which dominates the area and is perched on the cliff
edge), The Temple of the Frescoes and The Temple of the Descending God.
El Castillo is the result of
several phases of building. Steps lead to an upper temple featuring columns decorated with
plumed serpents as seen in Chichen Itza and an indication of Toltec influence. It would
also have been used as a watchtower, with visibility over land and sea. Beneath El
Castillo is a small but perfect beach, where the Mayans would have landed their canoes.
The Temple of the Descending God
is to the left of El Castillo when looking out to sea. Above the door of the temple is a
stucco relief of a figure prevalent at Tulúm, the upside-down winged god that also shows
bee-like features. This figure is sometimes referred to as the "diving god"
because of its position and the resemblance to a bee signifies the importance of honey to
the Mayans.
The Temple of the Frescoes lies
between El Castillo and the entrance to the site. Here fragments of color can be seen on
murals depicting Maya life.
| Tulúm
was built around AD 1200 as the Mayan civilization declined |
Amongst the
frescoes is a portrayal of a man on a horse, which indicates that these drawings were
still being worked on after the Spanish invasion. (The horse was introduced by the Spanish
and clearly had a disarming effect on the Mayans - originally it was thought that horse
and rider were one being and later, when one of Cortes horses died, its skeleton was
worshipped as a god). |
