Mérida’s New Tren Maya Museum Highlights Recovered Artifacts
In the Ateneo Peninsular, the new Tren Maya Museum showcases archaeological artifacts recovered during the construction of the Maya train.
Though this new museum comprises three good-sized exhibition rooms, it takes up just a fraction of Mérida’s grand Ateneo Peninsular, which is adjacent to the Cathedral and across from the Plaza Grande. It is also slated to house a cafe, shops, and other services. The gates of the MACAY — the contemporary art museum that shares space in the building — are currently closed, with the floor just behind its entrance covered with perhaps hundreds of Prehispanic uncataloged artifacts from the Tren Maya archaeological salvage project.
The new exhibition is divided into seven sections, one for each Tren Maya route, traversing Mexico’s southeastern states of Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo. The exhibit’s museography is excellent, and it offers vision-impaired visitors (and everyone else) the opportunity to touch and feel replicas of a handful of artifacts, as well as information kiosks in braille.
One thing to keep in mind about the Tren Maya Museum is that a handful of the artifacts on display are replicas, as is the case with a reproduction of a funerary urn depicting a young form of the deity of agriculture, Yum Kaax, emerging from a corn husk and a stelae of Ixik K’aawil Ajaw, Queen Regen of Coba. The originals will likely be shown in similar museums throughout the region, or perhaps even Mexico City’s Museum of Anthropology.
Tren Maya Museum Mérida
The artifacts are beautiful, with some standouts including highly ornate ceremonial vessels, incense burners, tools, and a few sculptures. One thing that was a little disappointing was that no original architectural elements were moved to make way for the tracks, which were included in the exhibit, other than a reproduction of a pillar from ancient Hampolol, which once stood on the outskirts of what today is Campeche’s capital city.
Another interesting aspect of the exhibit is the opportunity to enter the Ateneo Peninsular, which, other than the section formerly dedicated to the MACAY, had been closed for decades. Though it’s not yet possible to explore the newly restored structure, which began construction way back in 1573, if you peek arround enough, you can catch a few glimpses of the colonial courtyard, which is gorgeous, and amazing to see for the first time — especially given its location and the fact that it has been off limits for as long as I can remember.
The term “ateneo” refers to a type of structure dedicated to learned societies or literary and scientific academies where intellectuals, scholars, and artists gather to discuss philosophy, literature, science, and politics. These institutions were inspired by European models, particularly the Ateneo societies of Spain, which drew from classical Athenian traditions of intellectual discourse.
Another thing this new museum has going for it is that it offers visitors to Mérida who are only in the city for a quick day trip the opportunity to check out some fascinating Mayan artifacts without having to venture outside of the city’s main plaza. Visitors can make a day out of the Plaza Grande. Other free attractions include the Murals of Castro Pachecho in the Governor’s Palace, and the Casa de Montejo Museum, which allows visitors to enter at any time, unlike its past system of guided tours at specific times.
There is also a political dimension to the new Tren Maya museum. The federal government has come under a great deal of scrutiny after several reports emerged that the accelerated pace of construction of the rail network was putting the region’s cultural heritage at risk. Though this exhibit does a good job of displaying some of what was salvaged during the construction, serious questions are raised about vanished archaeological sites, and well-documented practices such as filling cenotes with cement to speed up construction.
Overall, the museum is excellent and adds to the already wonderful experience of Mérida’s Plaza Grande, which recently received a facelift, even though locals are still upset about its new, more “modern” look.
If you go
The Tren Maya Museum is across from Mérida’s Plaza Grande on calles 60 and 63. Admission is free, but an INAH employee at the museum said there is no official word on how long that will be the case.
Senior Editor Carlos Rosado van der Gracht is a Mexican expedition/Canadian photographer, adventure leader, and PhD candidate. Born in Mérida, Carlos holds multimedia, philosophy, and translation degrees from universities in Mexico, Canada and Norway.
