A Portal to the Ancient City of Teotihuacán

May 1, 2024 – August 31, 2024

I Walk Under the Earth; Lightly, in a Cloud of 300,000 Points. A Portal to the Ancient City of Teotihuacán through LiDAR Surveys, Digital Preservation, and Immersive Storytelling seeks to deepen humanities-driven understanding of the archaeological site Teotihuacán in Mexico through advanced survey methods, cultural history, and design-based strategies for vivid interpretive storytelling, curation, and preservation. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 and situated 50 km northeast of Mexico City, the ancient city of Teotihuacán attracts approximately 4.5 million visitors annually from around the globe. Teotihuacán was built between C.E. 100 – 700, and at its peak, housed over 175,000 inhabitants, making it the largest city in the Americas. Renowned for its grand ceremonial structures, including the Pyramid of the Sun, Pyramid of the Moon, and the Temple of the Feathered Serpent [Templo de Quetzalcoatl], the city also included hundreds of courtyard housing compounds organized in a clear urban plan. Teotihuacán is one of the most significant examples of urbanism and architectural planning in the ancient world. This is an inter-institutional collaboration between the University of Michigan and the National Institute of Anthropology and History [INAH] in Mexico to develop innovative approaches in the Digital Humanities to amplify the cultural value of Teotihuacán. 

The project aims to digitally capture and spatially analyze the subterranean world of Teotihuacán through the innovative application of LiDAR technology and photogrammetry. This initiative will prototype survey methods for the Tlalocan tunnel under Templo de Quetzalcoatl and photogrammetry of the 300,000 ceremonial artifacts recovered from the site. The team will create a digital-twin of the tunnel and the Teotihuacán Archaeological Zone site through an immersive and vivid spatial narrative that makes the cultural and intellectual content accessible to students, scholars, and global audiences to experience the visceral qualities of this critical site virtually. The objective is to dramatically enhance public understanding of the archaeological and cultural significance of Teotihuacán, described as the place where the gods were created.

This project is led by PI Robert Adams, Associate Professor of Architecture.

Image: Teotihuacan: Panoramic view from the summit of the Pyramid of the Moon, with the Pyramid of the Sun on the far left. Photo by Rene Trohs. 20 October 2016. Accessed 10 December 2022.