What the Moon looks like today
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Pyramid of the Moon
Between
200 BCE and 150CE, huge ritual pyramids were constructed in Mexico at
Teotihuacan, the City of the Gods, the birthplace of the myth of the great god
and cultural hero, Quetzacoatl. The immense ruins of these pyramids lie
about 30 miles from Mexico City. The builders are believed to be the
Toltecs.
The city is laid out with geometric precision, probably for ritual purposes. The 3-mile Street of the Dead runs past the largest pyramid, The Pyramid of the Sun, which is 217 feet high on a base of 750 square feet. At one end of the street is the Pyramid of the Moon, rising 149 feet. At the opposite end is the Citadel, where the Temple of Quetzacoatl lies. Other streets radiate outward, and the city is filled with other religious temples and buildings of commerce.
The exact nature of the rites that took place here is not known. The inhabitants left no inscriptions. They cremated their dead; possibly this rite took place at the Pyramid of the Moon, following a solemn procession down the Street of the Dead.
Teotihuacan went into decline between 650 and 750CE, beset by internal strife and savage attacks from barbarians. It was abandoned between 750 and 800CE.