On December 29, 2017, Mexico experienced tragedy when a magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the center of the country, killing nearly 370 people.
The natural disaster also damaged the main pyramid at the Teopanzolco archaeological site in Morelo state, about 85 kilometers (50 miles) from Mexico City.
In the midst of so much bad news, a surprise: while technicians and researchers were checking the structural damage of the pyramid, they discovered a secret temple, hidden inside the structure.
Everything indicates that this temple was dedicated to the Aztec god of rain, called Tláloc.
During a press conference, Isabel Campos Goenaga, director of Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History, said that teams dug boreholes to analyze the interior of the pyramid and it was then that they found the hidden construction.
The initial structure dates back to the 12th century, more precisely to the period between the years 1150 and 1200, which indicates that the temple is the oldest evidence of the presence of humans at that archaeological site.
Experts are certain that its architectural pattern influenced the construction of the outer part of the pyramid, which was erected around it years later.
Unfortunately, the floor of the sanctuary sank with the earthquake becoming deformed and with its structures unstable, which means that, for now, visiting this hidden corner is out of the question.
