Today we visited Monte Alban, an archeological site about thirty minutes by bus from the center of town.  It was founded by the Zapotec people around 500 BC and remained a significant Mesoamerican cultural site for about 1200 years until around 750 AD.  Estimates are that around 35,000 people lived there. Much of the site has been excavated, but there still remain areas that have not been completed.  This is much older than other indigenous sites we have visited, such as Hovenweep in Colorado, which was founded around 1200 AD. In all of southern Mexico the Zapotec people numbered around 500,000 including Mitla and other sites. The Zapotec language is still spoken today; in fact, the man we met earlier in our trip, Tomas Chinai, had written a story of his childhood in Zapotec.

The main site showing two amphitheaters for ceremonial events

A single dwelling with entryway

The location was a thousand feet above the valley and easily defensible

The steps are much steeper than ours leading to speculation the people were tall

Schematic of overall site. Photos taken from bottom of site plan