Cañada de la Virgen

Cañada de la Virgen (Spanish for Virgin's Glen) is an Otomi archaeological site in Mexico. Located in the state of Guanajuato, the site was first excavated in 1995, while the official excavation began in 2002. Public access was first allowed in 2011. However, unlike its famous counterparts such as Chichen Itza, access is strictly controlled due to it sitting on private property, one of the largest ex-haciendas in Guanajuato. The Otomi people have lived in the valley of San Miguel de Allende for thousands of years. It is presumed that construction at Cañada De La Virgen most likely began after the collapse of the Teotihuacan culture, where they are believed to have previously resided along with other tribes in the Valley of Mexico (near Mexico City today), around 530 AD. The Otomi people were avid sky watchers and passed information down from generation to generation. These people used astronomical criteria, religious beliefs and agricultural cycles to select the Laja River Valley for the construction of this Pre-Hispanic burial site. The site faces the celestial north, where the stars spin around in a circle throughout the year. The moon moves up the stairs of the pyramid as its cycle advances. It rises and falls perfectly in pyramid notches at key times in the lunar calendar and during solstice periods. The site was dedicated to the Moon, the Sun and Venus, as demonstrated by archaeoastronomical studies conducted by the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). Its main features are: Ceremonial Avenue, House of the Wind, House of the Longest Night (scientists believe has some relationship with the Otomi's belief in the duality of the heavens and earth (Sun and Moon, man and woman, etc.) and House of the Thirteen Heavens. Around 900 AD, the Otomi civilization began to decline and by 1050 AD, the site was abandoned, only to be rediscovered at the end of the 20th century. Work and research continue to this day.