Chichén-Itzá - a photo on Flickriver

Chichén-Itzá

El Castillo (Spanish pronunciation: [el kas'tiʎo], Spanish for "the castle"), also known as the Temple of Kukulcan (or sometimes Kukulkan), is a Mesoamerican step-pyramid that dominates the center of the Chichen Itza archaeological site in the Mexican state of Yucatán. The building is more formally designated by archaeologists as Chichen Itza Structure 5B18.
Built by the pre-Columbian Maya civilization sometime between the 9th and 12th centuries CE, El Castillo served as a temple to the god Kukulkan, the Yucatec Maya Feathered Serpent deity closely related to the god Quetzalcoatl known to the Aztecs and other central Mexican cultures of the Postclassic period.
The pyramid consists of a series of square terraces with stairways up each of the four sides to the temple on top. Sculptures of plumed serpents run down the sides of the northern balustrade. During the spring and autumn equinoxes, the late afternoon sun strikes off the northwest corner of the pyramid and casts a series of triangular shadows against the northwest balustrade, creating the illusion of a feathered serpent "crawling" down the pyramid. The event has been very popular, but it is questionable whether it is a result of a purposeful design. Each of the pyramid's four sides has 91 steps which, when added together and including the temple platform on top as the final "step", produces a total of 365 steps (which is equal to the number of days of the Haab' year).
The structure is 24 m (79 ft) high, plus an additional 6 m (20 ft) for the temple. The square base measures 55.3 m (181 ft) across.

El Templo de Kukulkán o Pirámide de Kukulkán (estructura también conocida con el nombre de «El Castillo», debido a que los conquistadores españoles en el siglo XVI buscaban alguna similitud arquitectónica con las existentes en el continente europeo), es un edificio prehispánico ubicado en la península de Yucatán, en el actual estado del mismo nombre. El actual templo fue construido en el siglo XII d. C. por los mayas itzáes en su capital, la ciudad prehispánica de Chichén Itzá, fundada originalmente en el siglo VI d. C. Su diseño tiene una forma geométrica piramidal, cuenta con nueve niveles o basamentos, cuatro fachadas principales cada una con una escalinata central, y una plataforma superior rematada por un templete. En esta construcción se rindió culto al dios maya Kukulkán (en idioma maya: Serpiente Emplumada).

La noche de los Mayas, de Silvestre Revueltas: youtu.be/Wwdt8YPp1wY

Taken in: México / Yucatan / Chichén-Itzá (show map)

Taken on: December 23, 2017

Tags:

El Castillo

pirámide

pyramid

temple

ancient

archeological

site

ruins

Chichén-Itzá

Yucatán

México

mayas

black and white

blanco y negro

Nikon

D7100

f/16 « less

Sets appears in: • a life shot in black and white • 2014-2017

Groups appears in: • *Mexico in B&W • Shadow of a Doubt more » • PHOTOCLASSIC • About You - (P2C2) • Sit down, look & listen • Image Gallery / B&W !!! • some things are better than others!!! • Image Portrait Gallery !!! - B&W or Color !!! • Skancheli (BlackandWhite Only) • AT YOUR BEST IN BW (EACH PHOTO NEEDS AN ADMIN. INVITATION) • The Nikon D7100 Group • B&W Adventures • ARTBWBTRA - ART IN BLACK AND WHITE - SELECTIVE COLOR - MONOTONE • MOFO Images -B&W- (More Of Flickr Originals) • A UNESCO SITE « less

Camera: Nikon D7100, f/16.0, 1/125 sec, 18mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D7100
Aperture:	f/16.0
Exposure Time:	0.008 sec (1/125)
Focal Length:	18mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Manual
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Center-weighted average
White Balance:	Manual
Light Source:	Fine Weather
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Snapseed 2.18.168212136
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