Legendary temple unearthed on hilltop in Mexico, but a mystery lingers.
BY ASPEN PFLUGHOEFT
OCTOBER 03, 2023 6:57 AM
Archaeologists excavated a hilltop chapel in Atlixco and found the ruins of ancient pre-Hispanic temple below, confirming a local legend, officials said. Photo from INAH Puebla Center
Today, if you look up to the peak of San Miguel’s hill in central Mexico, you’ll see a yellow chapel for the hill’s namesake. High above, the lone structure overshadows its surroundings. But, according to local legend, if you’d looked up the same hill before the Spanish arrived, you would have seen a different religious structure: a teocalli, or an ancient temple.
This legend was passed from generation to generation, but, according to a Sept. 29 news release from Mexico’s Ministry of Culture and National Institute of Anthropology and History, no one had ever tried to prove or disprove it — until now. During improvement projects at the Chapel of Archangel Saint Michael in Atlixco, archaeologists were brought in to survey the chapel and excavate a few small areas, the release said.
Archaeologists dug into the modern-day floor and found fragments of clay pottery, stone tools and other ornaments mixed with dirt and rocks, officials said. They identified this mixture as fillings, a construction method used by ancient residents of Atlixco to shape the hill into a pyramid.
The excavated area of the modern-day Chapel of Archangel Saint Michael in Atlixco. Photo from INAH Puebla Center
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