What To Expect From PAM’s Teotihuacán Exhibit
First Friday’s opening night of Teotihuacán: City of Water, City of Fire at the Phoenix Art Museum (PAM for short) was super dope. Especially because we saw so many local artists participating in the celebration, and the community came out to support them.
We think no one should pass up experiencing a traveling show with hundreds of artifacts from one the most enigmatic cities in Mesoamerica. Now, like most great exhibits, this one will leave with more questions than answers, hopefully you’ll have the urge to fetch them.
So here’s what you can expect from Teotihuacán: City of Water, City of Fire, which will be in La Phoenikera until January 27, 2019.
1. Prepare to get schooled on Mesoamerican history and what you think you know about ancient Mexican history. Teotihucán is a site that still puzzles scientists and continues to provide evidence about the social fabric, religious practices, and origin of this great city. I didn’t even know the Aztecs found it between 600 and 900 years after its demise! The info on the description panels is legit. Read them! Don’t just walk around the artifacts without knowing their context and their importance. There are facts that will blow your mind with parallels with indigenous communities in the U.S. and Arizona.
Moon Pyramid in Teotihuacán. Photo: Eye Ubiquitous/UIG via Getty Images.
2. From what we’ve come to understand, Teotihucán and La Phoenikera are very similar in terms of being pluricultural centers with a deep connection to water, and agriculture innovation; where several tribes, cultures, and belief systems coexisted. This, however, wasn’t uncommon in ancient cities or even modern society, but it could give us clues as to how to avoid our own extinction. After all, their collapse was due to poor management of the economy and politics, not being able to adapt to the necessities of the times, inefficient government institutions and crumbling trade networks. Check, check and check.
No one knows who created these structures. Civilizations throughout the years found them and called it “the place where men become gods” or “city of gods.” These are the ruins east of the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, looking south. Photo: Jorge Pérez de Lara Elías.
3. Expect to pay. The Phoenix Art Museum’s general admission is between $9 and $23, depending on your age and it includes access to the Teotihuacán exhibit. However, there are some days you can experience it for as little as 5 bucks a pop. Those days are Wednesday, First Friday and the Second Sunday of every month. Check out the Museum’s calendar.
4. If you’re a history buff and love unsolved mysteries of ancient civilizations, you’ll appreciate this exhibit filled with pieces of a puzzle, fragments of an ancient way of living. You’ll totally geek out with some artifacts unseen until now. Some of these were recently discovered under the main pyramids and their surrounding settlements. Two artifacts in the exhibit haven’t even been shown in Mexico, which means, Phoenikerxs get dibs!
These Two were recently discovered in the depths of the Feathered Serpent Pyramid. Their mouths are open because it means they’re speaking. Because of where they were found, it is believed that they might be the city’s founders. Photo: Sergio Gómez Chávez.
5. The PAM programmed activities relevant to the exhibit throughout the duration of the exhibit, and there are plenty of options. Check out their calendar for upcoming events.
6. Being present and sharing space with such energetic objects from an era in which humans had a deeper connection with the natural/spiritual world is mind-boggling. Insert mindblown emoji here.
Figurillas. You can easily spend a few hours geeking out and learning about the artifacts! Photo: LaPhoenikera.com
Our favorite artifacts:
One or favs comes from a burial site excavated at the Moon Pyramid. The recreation of this offering has a female figure made with obsidian and a male figure made of mosaic serpentine and greenstone surrounded by 18 obsidian eccentrics (objects used in rituals as offerings), in the shapes of feathered serpents and lightning bolts.
Male and female figurine surrounded by eccentrics. This piece is a recreation of how it was found. Photo: LaPhoenikera.com
A mask with a tear under the left eye, which totally reminded us of our primos who got that tattoo near their cheek bone.
El/La “smiley.” We seriously LOL’d with this mask, no disrespect, but that’s some OG ish! Photo: Laphoenikera.com
