Buried deep within the jungles of Mexico‘s Yucatan peninsula, the ancient Maya city of Coba has long beckoned to those fascinated by the mysteries of Mesoamerica‘s most advanced pre-Columbian civilization. While it may not have the instant name recognition of famed sites like Chichen Itza or Tikal, Coba stands out as one of the largest, most powerful, and most unusual of all Maya cities.
The Rise of a Maya Metropolis
The origins of Coba date back to the Early Classic period of Maya history. Between 100-600 AD, what began as a small settlement gradually developed into a major city, taking advantage of a strategic location between two large lagoons. By the Late Classic period from 600-900 AD, Coba had become a thriving metropolis and a key player in the politics and economy of the northeastern Yucatan.
At its peak, Coba covered a sprawling 80-100 square kilometers and boasted a population estimated at 50,000 inhabitants. The city center was focused around several main groups of structures built upon elevated platforms, including the Coba Group, Nohoch Mul Group, and Macanxoc Group.
Arguably the most iconic landmark of Coba is the Nohoch Mul pyramid. Rising to a height of 42 meters (138 feet), it is the tallest pyramid in the northern Yucatan and second tallest in the entire Maya world after the 65m tall Caana ("Sky Palace") at Calakmul. The name Nohoch Mul means "large hill" in Yucatec Maya.
Other important structures include the La Iglesia ("The Church") pyramid, the Xaibe palace, several circular altars, and at least two ballcourts for playing the ritual ballgame that was deeply significant in Maya culture. Over 40 stelae have been found throughout the site, carved stone monuments that record the exploits of Coba‘s rulers.
The Supreme Lords of Coba
Coba was ruled by a series of lords with the exalted title k‘uhul ajaw or "holy lord". Through epigraphic evidence from stelae, archaeologists have pieced together a partial list of Coba‘s kings, although many gaps remain.
The earliest known Coba ruler is Lady Yopaat, one of the rare female leaders documented in Maya history, who reigned around 640 AD. Later rulers who expanded Coba‘s power include Glyph Y Lord (reputed founder of the Coba dynasty), K‘ahk‘ Chitam ("Fire Peccary"), Xaman K‘awiil ("North K‘awiil"), and Tun K‘awiil.
Coba vied with other major polities like Calakmul, Uxmal and Chichen Itza for regional influence. Murals at Coba even suggest that it may have conquered Calakmul, the seat of the mighty Snake Kingdom, in a "star war" around 695 AD. However, this claim is disputed.
Sacbe: The White Roads of Coba
One of the most unique and fascinating features of Coba is its extensive network of elevated causeways radiating out from the city core. The Maya called these roads sacbeob (singular: sacbe), meaning "white road", as they were originally surfaced with white limestone stucco.
Over 50 sacbe have been mapped around Coba, more than any other site in the Maya world. They range in length from less than 1km to nearly 100km, with an average width of 10-25 meters. The longest sacbe runs west for 100km (62 miles) to the site of Yaxuna near Chichen Itza.
These superhighways of the Maya weren‘t just for transportation – they were vital arteries of trade, communication, and military power, tying Coba‘s hinterlands to the city center. Archaeologists have also found the remains of several settlements along the sacbeob that were likely rest stops for travelers and military outposts.
The Mystery of Coba‘s Decline
Around 900-1000 AD, the Classical Maya civilization entered a period of general decline and instability known as the Terminal Classic. Like many great Maya cities, Coba fell into a gradual decline during this time, losing political influence and seeing a decrease in new construction.
The last dated inscription at Coba comes from 909 AD. After that, population slowly dwindled, although the city was not abandoned completely. Some architecture shows Toltec influences, suggesting contact with central Mexico in the Postclassic period.
Theories abound as to what caused the collapse of Coba and Classic Maya society in general. Possible factors include overpopulation and depletion of environmental resources, extended drought, disease, natural disasters, increasing warfare, invasion by foreign powers, shifts in trade routes, and peasant revolts against the elite class. The truth is likely a complex combination of many forces that strained the fabric of Maya civilization.
By the time Spanish conquistadors arrived in the early 1500s, Coba had been largely reclaimed by the jungle, fading into legend. The city‘s memory was kept alive by local Maya living in the small nearby village of Macario Gomez, but it wasn‘t until the 1800s that the outside world took notice of this lost metropolis in the jungle.
Explorers in the Jungle
Coba remained little known until the mid-19th century, when explorers John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood heard rumors of a ruined city during their travels in Yucatan. Intrigued, the pair set out to find Coba in 1842. Although they didn‘t reach the main ruins, Stephens published detailed accounts of sacbeob and other structures he saw along the way. His vivid descriptions sparked the imagination of scholars and adventurers.
Over the next decades, more intrepid explorers reached Coba, including Desiré Charnay, Teoberto Maler, and Thompson in the late 1800s. Maler was the first to photograph Nohoch Mul and other structures in 1893, putting Coba on the map. In 1926, Thomas Gann and his colleagues were the first to systematically map the center of the site and record detailed notes.
However, dense jungle, distance from colonial towns, and the Caste War, a Maya uprising that lasted into the early 1900s, hindered further work. It wasn‘t until the Carnegie Project of the 1930s-40s that the first formal archaeological excavations took place under Alfonso Villa Rojas and Robert Redfield.
More sustained work had to wait until the 1970s, when the Mexican government‘s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) cleared roads to Coba and established a permanent research facility. Over the next decades, major projects expanded under Rafael Cobos, Petr Kováč, William Folan and others to map the extensive site, excavate and restore key structures, and decipher the many inscriptions.
Coba Today
Today, Coba is open to the public as an archaeological park and is one of the most popular Maya sites in Quintana Roo, drawing thousands of visitors annually. The ancient city remains under active study by archaeologists, with new discoveries made regularly that shed more light on this once-mighty Maya capital.
Due to its vast size and more remote location, Coba doesn‘t see the same crowds as the more famous Chichen Itza and Tulum. For travelers seeking a more adventurous, less structured experience, Coba offers an unsurpassed chance to immerse yourself in the world of the ancient Maya and feel like a true explorer discovering a lost city.
Several main groups of structures have been partially restored and opened to visitors, connected by miles of sacbe that make for memorable hikes or bike rides through the jungle:
- Coba Group: The main architectural center, with the La Iglesia pyramid, several stelae, altars, and a ballcourt.
- Nohoch Mul Group: Home to the 138 ft tall Nohoch Mul pyramid, the tallest structure at Coba. Climbing the 120 steep stone steps to the top rewards you with a breathtaking 360-degree view of the jungle canopy stretching to the horizon. This group also contains the La Pinturas ("The Paintings") residential complex.
- Macanxoc Group: An interesting cluster of 8 stelae containing dates and names of rulers and several small altars and platforms. Only partially restored, giving it an atmospheric, lost-in-the-jungle vibe.
Exploring the full site of Coba requires a full day, good hiking shoes, sun protection, and plenty of water. The entry fee is 75 pesos (about $4 USD), and bike rentals are available. For the best experience, consider staying a night or two in the small modern pueblo of Coba so you can get an early start to beat the heat and day trip crowds from Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum.
Despite over 150 years of study, Coba has yet to reveal all its secrets. Only a small fraction of the thousands of structures detected have been excavated; much still lies hidden beneath thick vegetation. Active digs continue to unearth new insights into this enigmatic Maya metropolis.
From its mighty pyramids to its enigmatic sacbe, Coba offers us a tantalizing window into a vanished civilization and a bridge to the world of the ancient Maya – an opportunity not just to see the ruins of the past, but to walk in the very footsteps of these fascinating people and keep their stories alive. It‘s an experience not to be missed by any traveler to the Yucatan.
Sources:
- Cobos, R. (2006). The Relationship Between Settlements and Caves in the Coba Area. University of Tsukuba.
- Folan, W. J., Fletcher, L. A., & Kintz, E. R. (1979). Fruit, fiber, bark, and resin: Social organization of a Maya urban center. Science, 204(4394), 697-701.
- Kováč, M., Drápela, T., & Lieskovský, T. (2016). Coba: A Classic Maya Metropolis. MDPI.
