El Templo del Dios Descendente - Tulum, Mexico
Posted by: 
denben
N 20° 12.888 W 087° 25.734
16Q E 455195 N 2235309
El Templo del Dios Descendente (English: The Temple of the Descending God) is located in Tulum, the site of a pre-Columbian Mayan fortified town serving as a major port for Cobá, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo, Mexico.
Waymark Code: WMY3QC
Location: Quintana Roo, Mexico
Date Posted: 04/14/2018
Views: 4
"The small Temple of the Diving God at Tulúm is named for a stucco relief of this singular deity in a niche above its western doorway. Diving or Descending God figures, present on several buildings at Tulúm, also appear at Cobá and Sayil. They may represent the Maya bee god Ah Muzencab, known from the Madrid Codex. Their prominence at Tulúm and Cobá suggests the economic importance of honey in the province of Ecab (Henderson 1981). Other researchers identify the Diving God as Xux Ek, the Maya “Wasp Star” equivalent to Venus (A. Miller 1974). Exterior walls of the temple were painted in a mixture of Mayan and Mixteca-Puebla styles, with images of snakes surrounding sun, rain, and maize. The interior back wall is also covered with mural paintings, including a large feathered rattlesnake head and a richly adorned figure with seashells, possibly Chalchihuitlicue ("Jade Water"), the goddess of the sea and consort of the Mexican rain god Tlaloc." (
visit link)
The information panel says:
"Temple of the Descending God
Undoubtedly, this is one of the most beautiful in Tulum. Its name is because in the niche located on top of the door there is a sculpture of a winged figure falling from the sky. His legs are up, his arms below, he has a headdress on his head and he is holding an object in his hands.
Although today it is an impressive building, over 500 years ago it was even more beautiful, as the temple was decorated, inside and out, with numerous representations of Gods in mural painting.
The walls and doors are not completely vertical, rather they are inclined, but this is not the result of passage of time - it was built that way originally!"
Visit Instructions: To log your visit to this Waymark, post a picture of your GPSr next to the artifact. Post a second, wider picture to show the "Ancient Evidence" in context.