Sophia McCrimmon

Mayan temple architecture utilized it's position within larger planned metropolitan spaces, temporal/light effects inspired by religion and cosmology, and awe-inspiring megalithic construction to emphasize the importance of religion in society. 

Urban Planning: Where did temples fit within a Mayan metropolis?
Mayan cities were some of the largest of the ancient age, often serving populations of up to 20,000 people. They also represent some of the first examples of “urban planning,” in that towns were organized and coordinated into certain arrangements based on the functions of different buildings. Cities often contained elaborate central complexes surrounding a plaza or a ditch. These spaces included buildings serving the most important functions in Mayan society, namely government palaces and religious temples. Mayan towns were rather standardized and different localities often had a common inventory of public buildings, like ball courts, palace compounds, and temples. The use of a central rectangular common area as a main component of urban design transcends even Mayan architecture alone and can be seen as a common concept in mesoamerican civilizations as a whole. Though it is debated among scholars, many believe that cosmology or astronomy played a role in the planning of urban centers. For example, there are records which suggest that Motecanzoma had part of the Templo Mayor in Tenochtitlan torn down and rebuilt so the sun would rise directly over the Temple of Huitzilopochtli on a certain equinox. In addition, some cities, like Nixtun-Ch’ich’ and Teotihuacan, were laid out on a grid aligned with an East-West or North-South Axis.

Modern Day Connection: Urban planning continues to play a major role in the development of most modern cities. The foremost American example is Washington DC, where major government and cultural institutions are centered around a rectangular “mall.” The National Park service states that the purpose of the national mall is to “provide a monumental, dignified, and symbolic setting for governmental structures, museums and national memorials.” Interestingly, the National Mall houses only secular government buildings while Mayan urban centers deliberately incorporated religious and governmental structures. Thus the actual physical layout of different cities can in some ways indicate the role of religion in society.

Architectural Features: How were religious beliefs expressed physically?
The Mayan temples were largely terraced/stepped pyramids not unlike the Pyramid of Djoser in ancient Egypt or the Ziggurats of the Ancient Near East. The temples were built from hand-cut limestone, often insulated with an inner layer of mica, and covered with stucco. All were constructed without domesticated animals or wheeled vehicles. They were usually megalithic, often reaching heights of over 200 feet.
Temples often incorporated the Mayans’ exceptional understanding of astronomy and cosmology in their design, and were often built to align with specific celestial events. Planning of this kind seems to add another layer to the discipline of architecture. Often, buildings are studied for their location and their materials, but the architects of Mayan temples made architecture about the temporal as well, designing not only the building itself but also its appearance when faced with specific lighting effects.
The best example of this phenomenon is “El Castillo,” a temple at the center of Chichen Itza. El Castillo was built in between the 9th and 12th centuries C.E. and was meant to honor the feathered serpent deity Kukulkan. Sculptures of plumed serpents align with the main staircases, and on the spring and autumn equinoxes the late afternoon sun illuminates these motifs, giving the illusion of a snake moving down the side of the pyramid.

Purpose: What kind of religious role did these structures play?
Some pyramids served simply as bases for a temple at the top, and were meant to be climbed in order to hold sacrifices. Others were purely intended to be symbolic and monumental. Like other religious structures, namely mesopotamian ziggurats, the purpose of the pyramids was to bring people closer to the heavens and create a connection between man and god. Temples at the top of pyramids sometimes held tombs for high-ranking officials, but rarely served as a place of worship for everyday Mayans. Unlike many other churches and religious spaces we’ve studied this year, Mayan temples were not meant to be spaces for communal worship. Instead, they served as megalithic reminders of the importance of religion in a theocratic society. Their position in urban centers, physical design, and purpose within society all demonstrate this fact.
 
VIDEO: This video by the History Channel offers a few more examples of modern-day connections to ancient Mayan architecture.  http://www.history.com/topics/maya/videos/where-did-it-come-from-the-ancient-maya---power-centers
​
​Another Extra Resource: http://www.m_ayaruins.com/yucmap.html This website has photos of all the currently excavated Mayan sites in South America. 

Modern-Day Connection Part 2:

This is "The Ziggurat," a ten-story office building in downtown Sacramento. Built in 1998, it is meant to resemble Mesopotamian stepped pyramids. It also bears striking resemblance to Mayan temples, which followed a similar architectural structure. The construction of this building shows that even today, the architectural power and aesthetic appeal of this kind of structure remains persistent. This building dominates the Sacramento skyline, and sends a powerful message about what is important in society. Perhaps that's why the building is currently leased by the California Department of General Services, an important government agency.

Photos:

Here is a photo of "El Castillo" at an equinox, when its serpent statue is illuminated by the sun.

Tikal serves as one example of a Mayan city where palaces and temples were all situated around a central plaza.

This Tomb of Pascal serves as another example of cosmology's role in architecture; It was designed so that when the sun sets over it, the small openings at its tower are briefly illuminated.

This city plan for Teotihuacan, a Mesoamerican city that was roughly aligned with the North and South axis.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

"Cosmology and Religion" Institute of Archaeology, National Institute of Culture and History. http://www.nichbelize.org/ia-archaeology/cosmology-and-religion.html. 

Mark, Joshua J. "Early Explorers of the Maya Civilization." Ancient History Encyclopedia. https://www.courses.psu.edu/anth/anth008_cmg149/pyr.html. 
​
Wagner, Rob. "Facts about Mayan Pyramids." USA Today. http://traveltips.usatoday.com/mayan-pyramids-1119.html

Department of AAOA. “Teotihuacan: Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/teot2/hd_teot2.htm (October 2001)

Department of AAOA. “Tikal: Sacred Architecture.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/maya2/hd_maya2.htm (October 2001)

Smith, Michael E. "Form and Meaning in the Earliest Cities." Journal of Planning History. February 2007.