Macuiltépetl
| Macuiltépetl Macuiltépec |
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| height | 1600 m | |
| location | Within the city of Xalapa | |
| Coordinates | 19 ° 32 '51 " N , 96 ° 55' 9" W | |
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| Type | Monogenetic volcano | |
| Age of the rock | approx. 30,000 years | |
| Normal way | Paved access road | |
Macuiltépetl (also called Macuiltépec ) is the name of a volcano that is located in the center of the Mexican city of Xalapa . It is 1,600 meters high and towers over the city by around 100 meters. The Macuiltépetl is now a park and has been declared a nature reserve ( Parque Ecológico ).
Toponyms
The meaning of Macuiltépetl can be paraphrased as (the) "fifth hill" or "hill five", while the Macuiltépec variant means "on hill five". In plans from the end of the 19th century (e.g. by Manuel Rivera Cambas) it could be proven that the hill had five promontories that stand out on the horizon. Nowadays, due to erosion and various causes, only two of the 5 mentioned peaks are noticed.
location
The Macuiltépetl is a small monogenic volcano with a conical shape and a steep slope in the northern center of the city of Xalapa . It rises around 100 meters from the surrounding urban area and is now almost completely forested.
From a geographical point of view, the Macuiltépetl is part of the Eje Neovolcánico Transversal . It is part of a volcanic cone that went extinct 30,000 years ago and consists of an area of 31 hectares, most of which are covered by a biodiversity characteristic of the cloud forest.
At the top of the summit is a lookout point, a building with an information center and a memorial.
history
Objects that indicate people in the area of the Macuiltépetl date from the late classical period between the 6th and 9th centuries AD. Findings made with the help of archeology students from the Universidad Veracruzana suggest Toltec features in the ceramics and the composition of the site's architecture. The narrow region around the hill was apparently colonized in two phases. It has not yet been proven that the site is part of the Macuilxochitlán settlement , the origin of the four pre-Hispanic quarters of Xalapa. Obsidian remains are regularly found in the park, and it is believed that Macuiltépetl itself was a sacred place for the rituals of the place's indigenous people.
In 1922, the North American engineer William Boone constructed a spiral path to the summit. In 1926, a radio station was set up on the summit. Their buildings are still preserved today and now house an information center. On November 28, 1978, the park was declared a nature reserve ( Parque Ecológico ).
Trivia
- The mountain is the type locality of the Cirsium subcoriaceum , a species of thistle native to Central America.
Individual evidence
- ↑ El Macuiltépetl "Parque Ecológico Macuiltépetl. Retrieved March 12, 2019 (European Spanish).
- ^ INEGI: Annuario del Estado de Veracruz. Retrieved March 12, 2019 .
