Iztaccihuatl (Mexique): 'Floating' stone pond on the side of a volcano revealed to be a 1,000 year old model of the universe

ASSOCIATED PRESS / MARK PRIGG 

Source - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5233267/Sanctuary-Mexican-volcano-universe-model.html

Mexican archaeologists say they have excavated a stone sanctuary in a pond on the side of a volcano east of Mexico City that may have been built as a miniature model of the universe.

The National Institute of Anthropology and History says the remnants of the stone 'tetzacualco' were in the center of a natural pond below the Iztaccihuatl volcano at an elevation of nearly 13,000 feet.

Researchers believe the stones were designed to appear to 'float' on the surface of the water to signify a Mesoamerican myth about the creation of the world that says Cipactli (the monster of the earth) floated on the primitive waters, and from his body the sky and the earth were created.

The remnants of the stone 'tetzacualco' were in the center of a natural pond (pictured) below the Iztaccihuatl volcano at an elevation of nearly 13,000 feet.

In addition to the sanctuary, decorative pieces associated with the rain god Tlaloc were found nearby.

'The existence of a tetzacualco (shrine) in the middle of a natural pond and the optical effect that occurs when the water mirrors, from which it seems that the structure emanates, suggests that the place is the representation of a primeval time and space, a miniature model of the universe,' the researchers said. 

Iris Hernandez, an archaeologist on the projecty, says there suggests that there was a ritual control of water from nearby springs to irrigate the pond in order to cause a visual effect in which it appears that the structure and mounds of stone float on the water surface, which in turn reflects the surrounding passage.

'These visual effects, in addition to the characteristics of the elements that make up the site and the relationship they have with each other, make us suppose that Nahualac could represent a microcosm that evokes the primitive waters and the beginning of the mythical time-space'.

HOW IT WORKED 

Some Mesoamerican myths about the creation of the world indicate that Cipactli (the monster of the earth) floated on the primitive waters and from his body the sky and the earth were created. 

The remnants of the stone 'tetzacualco' were in the center of a natural pond below the Iztaccihuatl volcano at an elevation of nearly 13,000 feet. 

Researchers say the stones were designed to appear to 'float' on the surface as a 'representation of a primeval time and space, a miniature model of the universe'