Bolonchén or Bolonchén de Rejón (Bolon Che'e'en in Modern Maya) is a town in the

Mexican state A Mexican State (), officially the Free and Sovereign State (), is a constituent federative entity of Mexico according to the Constitution of Mexico. Currently there are 31 states, each with its own constitution, government, state governor, a ...

Campeche Campeche, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Campeche, is one of the 31 states which, with Mexico City, make up the Administrative divisions of Mexico, 32 federal entities of Mexico. Located in southeast Mexico, it is bordered by the sta ...

, about east from the state capital,

, in Hopelchén Municipality. the town had a population of 3,975 people. A short distance to the south of Bolonchén are located the

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

s of Xtacunbilxunan.

Etymology

The name "Bolonchén" means "Nine Wells" in the

Maya language The Mayan languages In linguistics, it is conventional to use ''Mayan'' when referring to the languages, or an aspect of a language. In other academic fields, ''Maya'' is the preferred usage, serving as both a singular and plural noun, and a ...

, and "de Rejón" commemorates

Manuel Crescencio Rejón Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name), a given name and surname * Manuel (''Fawlty Towers''), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * Manuel I of Portugal, king of Po ...

, a lawyer who helped draft the 1917 Constitution and who was born here. Previously, the Pueblo was named Bolonchenticul. It was renamed in September 1955 to Balonchén de Rejón . It is also the birthplace of Olegario Molina y Solis, the Governor of Yucatán and Minister de Fomento in the Porfirio Díaz era (1877–1911). In 1833, it was the only pueblo to escape the cholera epidemic. This was due to the efforts of Julian Molina y Bastante (Olegario's grandfather) and the brothers Martinez.

Ruins

The large Bolonchén ruins site of ancient

Maya architecture The Mayan architecture of the Maya civilization spans across several thousands of years, several eras of political change, and architectural innovation before the Spanish colonization of the Americas. Often, the buildings most dramatic and easily ...

is located just north of the modern town. It dates from the and Post Classic Period. Most of the carved stone facades of the ancient structures were removed in the 18th through mid−20th centuries for reuse in new construction work. Nonetheless, a few monuments with sculpture and hieroglyphic texts are still visible. Both the ruins and cave were visited and described briefly by

John Lloyd Stephens John Lloyd Stephens (November 28, 1805October 13, 1852) was an American explorer, writer, and diplomat. He was a pivotal figure in the rediscovery of Maya civilization throughout Middle America (Americas), Middle America and in the planning of th ...

at the start of the 1840s, but no detailed scholarly examination of the ruins was made until Eric von Euw in 1973 (in part because Stephens and other early visitors failed to note that there were surviving inscriptions).

Climate

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bolonchen, Campeche Populated places in Campeche Maya sites in Campeche Maya Classic Period Maya sites that survived the end of the Classic Period