Platform of the Eagles and Jaguars

On monuments of this kind at Chichén Itzá, carved jaguars are tied to a Mesoamerican belief that the gods had to be fed to keep the world turning. Chichén Itzá is closely linked to that world of sacrifice through its sacred cenote, the deep natural well into which offerings were cast. These two weathered jaguar heads, most likely from the Platform of the Eagles and Jaguars near the Great Ball Court, belong to that setting. Their open, fanged jaws face out from the stone in bold relief, watching over the plaza below.