Zona Arqueológica de Calixtlahuaca

Calixtlahuaca spreads over the slopes of Cerro Tenismo on the northern edge of the Toluca valley, and it is the most important archaeological site close to Metepec. It was a capital of the Matlatzinca people, whose kings controlled a large part of the valley, until the Aztecs under Axayácatl conquered the region in the 1470s. Later uprisings against Aztec rule led to more destruction, and much of the population eventually moved away.

The best-known building is Structure 3, a round, stepped temple dedicated to Ehécatl, the wind god, rebuilt several times over the centuries. Round temples like this are associated with the wind god because their shape was thought to let the wind flow around them. Higher up the hill are the terraces and the so-called Calmecac, a large palace-like complex. Archaeologist José García Payón excavated and restored the main buildings in the 1930s, and newer research has since studied the houses and terraces where ordinary residents lived.

The site also holds a curiosity: a small terracotta head found in a burial here in the 1930s that some researchers have argued is Roman in style, a claim that is still debated.