Ruins of Monte Alban

At the ruins of Monte Alban, the first major city of Mesoamerica.  The setting is incredible on the top of a mountain overlooking present-day Oaxaca.  Archaeologists estimate the construction took hundreds of years without the wheel, the horse, oxen or any other large beasts of burden later brought by the Spanish.  

Monte Albán, site of ruins of an ancient centre of Zapotec andMixtec culture, located in what is now Oaxaca state, Mexico. The initial construction at the site has been placed at c. the 8th centurybc. It contains great plazas, truncated pyramids, a court for playing the ball game tlachtli, underground passageways, and about 170 tombs, the most elaborate yet uncovered in the Americas. The site is located on high ground, probably chosen for its defensibility. The great plaza atop the highest hill is flanked by four platforms; two temples stand on the platform to the south.

During the first two phases of Monte Albán culture, temples and other structures were built with dressed stone. Zapotec occupation of the site may be dated with certainty by about the 1st century bc. The beginning of the third and most flourishing phase of Monte Albáncorresponds to the Classic Period (ad 300–900). The influence of the Teotihuacán architectural style is quite evident; the zenith of the period was reached c. ad 500. During the ensuing fourth period, about which little is known, Monte Albán lost its political preeminence, and its structures began to decay. In the final phase, which lasted up to the Spanish conquest in the 16th century, the Mixtec inhabited the site; they reused some of the old Zapotec tombs, and the two cultures became fused. (From Encyclopedia Britannica)

This video shows the ballcourt in Monte Alban.

Why was Monte Alban built on the top of a mountain?  How was it built?  For theories, watch the video!

Why was Monte Alban abandoned?  For theories, watch the video!

How are people who get plastic surgery today similar to the ancient Zapotecs?  Watch the video.