Paquimé and Mata Ortiz
Patrimonio Mundial / Zona ArqueolóGica (INAH) · Casas Grandes, Chihuahua
Paquime, beside the village of Casas Grandes in the high Chihuahuan desert, was the great trading city of northern Mexico between roughly 1200 and 1450 and the hinge between Mesoamerica and the American Southwest. Its low adobe walls were once multi-storey room blocks with T-shaped doorways, an engineered system of channels and reservoirs, ball courts and pens where scarlet macaws were bred from birds carried about 1,500 km north from the tropics for their feathers. The city burned and emptied around 1450, and why is still argued. UNESCO inscribed it in 1998, and the excellent Museo de las Culturas del Norte on site is included in the ticket. The better story is 30 km south: in the 1970s a self-taught potter, Juan Quezada, in the village of Mata Ortiz worked out the ancient technique from broken sherds and taught his family and neighbours, and the village now makes pottery held in museums worldwide. It is 4 to 5 hours from Chihuahua city, so plan an overnight and expect near-empty ruins.
Zona Arqueológica de Paquimé, Casas Grandes, Casas Grandes, Chihuahua, 31850, Mexico
The archaeological zone and the Museo de las Culturas del Norte share one INAH admission and keep daytime hours, generally closing Mondays; INAH Sunday free admission applies to Mexican nationals and residents only. ⚠ DO THE MUSEUM FIRST - the low adobe walls are hard to read without it, and it is half the value of the ticket. ⚠ THE SITE IS FLAT AND REQUIRES NO CLIMBING, BUT HAS NO SHADE AT ALL - go early or late and carry water. ⚠ THE ADOBE IS FRAGILE: stay on marked routes. ⚠ MATA ORTIZ IS ABOUT 30 KM SOUTH ON A PARTLY UNPAVED ROAD with little public transport; ⚠ THE POTTERY WORKSHOPS ARE FAMILY HOUSES KEEPING HOUSEHOLD HOURS - knock rather than walk in, and buying in the village means the maker is paid properly. ⚠ IT IS FOUR TO FIVE HOURS FROM CHIHUAHUA CITY - this is an overnight trip at minimum, with the hotels in Nuevo Casas Grandes. ⚠ CHIHUAHUA CARRIES A TRAVEL ADVISORY - daylight driving only, and check current advice. ⚠ HOURS AND PRICES NOT VERIFIED FOR THIS FILE.
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