Devastating earthquake in Mexico unearths ancient rain god temple

A devastating earthquake that struck central Mexico last September gave way to a fascinating discovery: remnants of a rain god temple within an Aztec pyramid. The temple, dedicated to a deity called Tlaloc and located within the Teopanzolco pyramid in Cuernavaca, Morelos state, belonged to the region’s Tlahuica culture. As a result of the earthquake, “the pyramid suffered considerable rearrangement of the core of its structure,” said archaeologist Barbara Koniecza of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH). The greatest damage was at the top, where two temples had already been discovered — one dedicated to the Mesoamerican god of the sun and war, Huitzilopochtli, and another to Tlaloc. “The floor of both shrines sank and bent, which also put their stability in danger,” Koniecza said.