The northeast of the Mexican state of Yucatán is among the least explored areas on the peninsula. When visitors do make it to the area, they usually dart directly to the beach, either at Río Lagartos or El Cuyo.
But the inland of this neglected region has plenty to offer those with an adventurous spirit and a love for Prehispanic archaeology. Kulubá is by far the best-known archaeological site in the area and the only one that has been restored, but if you know where to look, the countryside is full of dozens of ancient settlements, each with a unique story to tell.
One such site is Tahcabo, located in the tiny community of the same name. The name Tahcabo in Yucatec-Maya loosely translates as “the place we harvest honey,” which makes sense as the Maya text known as the Chilam Balam describes the settlement as an important center.
As it happens, sinkholes known in Yucatec-Maya as k’oopo’ob, and rejolladas in Spanish, provide a humid environment for the harvest of cacao, something which the Maya were well aware of.
Though no structures at Tahcabo have been restored, INAH and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have undertaken excavations at the site. Based largely on pottery fragments, archaeologists believe that Tahcabo’s origins date back to the 6th century BCE. However, the remains of the structures found at the site suggest that the community continued to modify existing structures and grow well into the 12th century CE.
Though other ancient structures can be found in the surrounding countryside, today Tahcabo is dominated by a large mound believed to have once been at the center of the community’s ritual life.
One reason for the poor state of the once grand pyramid at Tahcabo is the colonial-era church that today lies directly next to it. Like at so many other sites in Mesoamerica, ancient temples were pillaged to build structures intended to serve the new regime.
But as fate would have it, the colonial church itself also fell, this time during a siege during the Caste War, in which indigenous Maya rose up in the middle of the 19th century.
The Caste War of Yucatán was a brutal conflict that raged in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico from 1847 to 1901. It was a rebellion of the Maya people against the Hispanic elites who had long held political and economic control of the region. The war’s roots can be traced to the Spanish conquest of Mexico in the 16th century, which established a system of forced labor and exploitation of the indigenous Maya.
There are several caves and cenotes in Tahcabo, but getting to them is perilous, as the stones leading the way down are very loose. If you decide to check them out, make sure to wear shoes with good treads and exercise extreme caution.
Inside Tahcabo city hall is a small community museum that displays a handful of artifacts from Maya antiquity to the early 20th century.
The museum is small but certainly worth a visit and because it receives so few visitors locals are particularly keen on telling you all about it.
Because of the great number of cenotes in the region, the region is overflowing with wildlife including exotic birds and even ocelots.
If you go
Getting to Tahcabo is not difficult but is out of the way. Just before entering Tizimin, take the exit south to Calotmul and continue for about 10 minutes. Then, turn east onto a particularly beautiful road for another 10 minutes or so. As this road leads only to Tahcabo, it is impossible to miss.
Keep in mind that these country roads are not meant for high speeds and that cell phone reception is spotty at best, so exercise caution.
