Xochicalco

An Epiclassic hilltop ceremonial center south of Cuernavaca, Xochicalco served as a political and astronomical hub between the fall of Teotihuacan and the rise of Tula. The Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent displays one of the most complex and well-preserved bas-relief friezes in ancient Mexican art, combining Teotihuacan, Maya, and Zapotec iconographic elements. An underground astronomical observatory uses a natural cave shaft to project a column of light onto a floor marking that precisely tracks the solar zenith.