El Meco Ruins

Dec 09,2007 00:00 by lescobar

Just a short distance from Cancun’s bustling downtown, in the area known as Punta Sam, there is a tranquil archeological site where you can take a rest and marvel at the architectural prowess of the ancient Maya.
Known as El Meco, the site is believed to date back to 300 - 500 AD, based on evidence uncovered there by archeologists who examined the ruins. It is comprised of a handful of stone structures that once formed a small Mayan fishing village, which was eventually abandoned in 600 AD.
The site is comprised of two areas – one which is open to the public and the other which is still being explored and thus, closed to visitors. The main road through Punta Sam runs through the middle of the site, acting as a division between El Meco’s two separate areas.
On the side of El Meco that is open to the public, there are a series of structures that are laid out in a plaza-like formation, leading archeologists to believe that it served as the ceremonial and political center of the town.
The most well preserved building in El Meco is the plaza’s quadrangular-shaped principal building, which is known as El Castillo or the Castle. There is an outer staircase leading to the top of the structure and two snakes have been carved into the base of it.
Flanking the building’s foundation are two smaller structures – one of which is thought to have been used as a temple and the other which is believed to have been used for residential or administrative purposes.
El Meco is located at Kilometer 2.7 of the Carretera Puerto Juárez – Punta Sam. It is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.