Cerro del Teúl

The Earliest Settlement In Zacatecas -
Teúl de González Ortega

Cerro de Teúl was one of the main pre-Hispanic ceremonial centers in the South of Zacatecas and maintained an uninterrupted occupation for approximately 1,600 years. This site is distributed in the hill's northeastern slope, where you will find the Main Square, the Sunken Patio, and the Game Court.

Until not long ago, the Cerro del Teul located in the inhabitants was only one of the last bastions of the brave "caxcans" fighting against the Spanish invasion. This site had one of the first industrial areas in the continent where they produced copper and ceramic crafts; various archaeological types have been found, such as shell and greenstone beads and earrings with Teotihuacan motifs and polychrome codex style ceramics.

With 150 hectares in which there is only one exploration in 5 to 6 hectares, it is open to the public since 2018. In all this time, 2 pyramids and a portion of a ball game have been discovered and several human burials that reveal changes in the funeral ceremonies.

At the site, a life-size pre-Hispanic skeleton was found, which represents a decapitated ballplayer from the years 900 - 1100 A.D.; it is 1.97 meters high, 52 cm in diameter, and weighs approximately one ton. Small fragments of another sculpture similar to the first one were also found. Today 7 tombs have been discovered, called "Tumbas de tiro," these have characteristics of the Western cultures and correspond to the Late Preclassic period.