Mitla, Mexico

Désiré Charnay French

Not on view

Among the first to photograph Mexico's Mayan ruins, the French archaeologist-adventurer Désiré Charnay gained considerable fame with the publication of his photographs and an account of his travels entitled Cités et ruines américaines: Mitla, Palenqué, Izamal, Chichen-Itza, Uxmal (1862-63). In this plate from the album, Charnay photographed a corner of the "Priest's House" at Mitla (a.d. 800-1200) as the strong sunlight of the Yucatan sliced across the courtyard-an outsized version of the building's later sundial, marking the daily passage of time in the sun's movement across centuries old walls.

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