Early in the discovery process, we made a remarkable find-- an archeological site within the property boundaries of Playa Viva! We are promoting initiatives that will research and restore the site for future generations to explore and learn from. During our initial development planning, Ayrie Cunliffe, Playa Viva master planner, noticed that the hills in the upper portion of the property had A-typical formations, marked by regular intervals of contour breaks and an almost perfectly square shape. Ayrie also observed that two of the hills had perfect north-south orientations, an occurrence unlikely to happen naturally. Ayrie hypothesized that these hills were formed by man aligned in accordance with the agricultural calendar. Road construction, completed prior to our purchase of the property, added further confirmation to this hypothesis as workers uncovered a myriad of small archeological artifacts.
We invited a Mexican archeologist to visit the site and assist us in developing a better understanding of the historic inhabitants of Playa Viva. The archeologist researched the site's history and found a small but important ancient community called Xolochiuhyan. The meaning of this name has various interpretations including place to grow old or place of the ancient ones, to place of the gourd (important as a tool for collecting and storing water). Archaeologists believe these three mounds served as agricultural terraces, with the nearby lake serving as a reliable source of fresh water. A small pyramid nearby made an excellent vantage point for seeing across the watershed and into neighboring valleys, providing plenty of advanced warning from invaders. Aztec records show that this area provided tribute to the Aztec kings in the form of salt, cacao and cloth made from locally-grown cotton.
Playa Viva is spearheading an effort to research and restore site. A museum will be built on site to share our discoveries. We are also working to restore these ancient agricultural terraces to utilize them as an organic agricultural school to continue the work we have begun in teaching organic agricultural courses to local farmers.
