Mitla Attractions 
How to get there
By bus from Oaxaca about 1 hour; by car from Oaxaca on the MEX 190 eastwards via El Tule, after 38km/24mi turn off left to Mitla, 4km/2.5mi away.
The ruined site of Mitla, situated on the edge of the village of the same name, is one of Mexico's most famous archaeological attractions. Although the site, like its architecture, appears fairly unimposing, the elaborate stone ornamentation is unsurpassed in the art history of Meso-America.
History
The mountains around what became known as Mitla were already settled around 6000 bc, as can be concluded from cave finds. As the area around Oaxaca saw a constant shift in population, the prehistory of Mitla (Náhuatl: Mictlán = "place of the dead") proves difficult to unravel. Zapotec influences certainly dominated the Classical period, i.e. during the Monte Albán III a and III b (ad 200-800) phases. After ad 900 the influence of the Mixtecs (Náhuatl: "those from the land of the clouds") is evident. These people, who lived mainly in north Oaxaca and who were under attack from the Toltecs from Tollán (Tula) between the 10th and the 12th c., slowly migrated south into the Zapotec kingdom. Through war and marriage the Mixtecs were able, until the arrival of the Spanish, to seize about three-quarters of the approximately 200 important places ruled by the Zapotecs and by other peoples. It is thought that the Mixtecs exercised considerable influence over Mitla between ad 900-1500. However, stylistic elements which are neither Mixtec nor Zapotec date from the important period of the 10th and 11th c. and it remains impossible to know who contributed to the development of these interesting sites. The 14th c. ceramics found at Mitla are almost wholly Mixtec in origin. In 1494 the Aztecs, who were advancing towards Oaxaca, managed to capture the town.
When the Spanish came to Mitla in 1521 the town was inhabited mainly by Zapotecs. By 1576 the Spaniard Diego García de Palacio was already reporting on Mitla. He was followed by Francisco de Burgoa, who recorded his impressions in 1679. Other chroniclers included Alexander von Humboldt, Guillermo Dupaix and Eduard Seler.
The Ruins
The archaeological area includes five important groups of buildings and a large number of houses and tombs around these groups.
By bus from Oaxaca about 1 hour; by car from Oaxaca on the MEX 190 eastwards via El Tule, after 38km/24mi turn off left to Mitla, 4km/2.5mi away.
The ruined site of Mitla, situated on the edge of the village of the same name, is one of Mexico's most famous archaeological attractions. Although the site, like its architecture, appears fairly unimposing, the elaborate stone ornamentation is unsurpassed in the art history of Meso-America.
History
The mountains around what became known as Mitla were already settled around 6000 bc, as can be concluded from cave finds. As the area around Oaxaca saw a constant shift in population, the prehistory of Mitla (Náhuatl: Mictlán = "place of the dead") proves difficult to unravel. Zapotec influences certainly dominated the Classical period, i.e. during the Monte Albán III a and III b (ad 200-800) phases. After ad 900 the influence of the Mixtecs (Náhuatl: "those from the land of the clouds") is evident. These people, who lived mainly in north Oaxaca and who were under attack from the Toltecs from Tollán (Tula) between the 10th and the 12th c., slowly migrated south into the Zapotec kingdom. Through war and marriage the Mixtecs were able, until the arrival of the Spanish, to seize about three-quarters of the approximately 200 important places ruled by the Zapotecs and by other peoples. It is thought that the Mixtecs exercised considerable influence over Mitla between ad 900-1500. However, stylistic elements which are neither Mixtec nor Zapotec date from the important period of the 10th and 11th c. and it remains impossible to know who contributed to the development of these interesting sites. The 14th c. ceramics found at Mitla are almost wholly Mixtec in origin. In 1494 the Aztecs, who were advancing towards Oaxaca, managed to capture the town.
When the Spanish came to Mitla in 1521 the town was inhabited mainly by Zapotecs. By 1576 the Spaniard Diego García de Palacio was already reporting on Mitla. He was followed by Francisco de Burgoa, who recorded his impressions in 1679. Other chroniclers included Alexander von Humboldt, Guillermo Dupaix and Eduard Seler.
The Ruins
The archaeological area includes five important groups of buildings and a large number of houses and tombs around these groups.
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Frissell Museum
Frissell Museum (Museo Frissell de Arte Zapoteca) is situated near the village square. It exhibits the largest collection of pre-Hispanic ceramics from the Oaxaca Valley.
Group of Columns
The most important complex, the Grupo de las Columnas (Group of Columns), is in the eastern part of the site. The palace-style construction comprises two square patios meeting at one corner. The inner courtyards are each surrounded by three large rooms.
Hacienda Xaaga
An interesting cruciform burial chamber was found in the Hacienda Xaaga a few2mi south of the ruins. It is embellished with meander ornamentation and retains some of its original painting.
Hall of Columns
An altar stands in the middle of the first patio which measures 45 m (148 ft) 3 36 m (118 ft). Steps lead on the northern side to a platform via which the Salón de las Columnas (Hall of Columns) is entered through three doors. This room (38 m (125 ft) 3 7 m (23 ft)), once roofed, has six round porphyry columns 4.20 m (133/4 ft) tall and almost 1 m (3 ft) in diameter.
