Photograph by Richard A. Cooke III/CORBIS
| Crowds of people visit the ancient Maya city of Chichen Itza on the autumnal equinox to witness the stunning effects of the sun upon El Castillo, an ancient Maya pyramid (upper right). During the autumn and spring equinoxes, the sun's rays strike the stairway of the pyramid and cast a long shadow that imitates the body of a serpent and joins with a carved stone head at the base of the structure. Located in present-day Mexico, both the city and its pyramid testify to the advances in astronomy and mathematics attained by the lost Maya culture. |
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