What To Expect Inside the Temple 
 

Twice a year, thousands of tourists throng to Chichén Itzá, an ancient Maya city on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, to see Kukulcán's descent. They congregate around the pyramid at the location, which the Spanish conquistadors called El Castillo ("the Castle"), where, according to legend, Kukulcán, the feathered serpent god, descends from the heavens, bestows his blessings on his followers on earth, and then journeys to the underworld, or Xibalba. The northern balustrade of El Castillo actually receives a shadow from the setting sun during the spring and fall equinoxes that resembles the shape of a snake slithering down the stairs. This effect is accentuated by the heads of sculpted beasts at the base.
Archaeologists have been studying the innards of the pyramid for almost a century as observers watch the phenomenon from the outside. Archaeological digs at El Castillo have uncovered two previous pyramids as well as what may be the Xibalba, or hell, entrance, in addition to the debris or earth from which many Mesoamerican pyramids are constructed.

El Castillo is one of the most distinctive Mesoamerican pyramids thanks to its attractive radial symmetry, orderly stepped platforms, and crowning temple. Between 1050 and 1300 CE, while the rest of the Maya population was declining, the Toltec-Maya most likely constructed it. Along with Kukulcán's descent, it is well-known for its connection to the Maya calendar. A 91-step staircase may be seen on each of the pyramid's four sides. The total stairs added to the temple at the top equal 365, which is the number of days in a Maya solar year. Priests were the only people permitted to enter the temple at the top, where they conducted holy rites at a height that brought them nearer to the sky-dwelling gods.

The pyramid was never intended to be entered, therefore priests ascended one of the four steps to get to the temple. However, a team of archaeologists started digging in the 1930s and found that another pyramid-temple was hidden inside the bigger pyramid. There were nine platforms, one stairway, a temple with human remains, a jade-encrusted jaguar throne, and a structure known as the Chac Mool, according to further investigations. A Maya sculpture known as a Chac Mool depicts an abstract masculine figure lounging while holding a bowl used to hold sacrifices. According to researchers, this pyramid was built between the years 800 and 1000 CE. Using non-invasive imaging methods, researchers found a third pyramid hidden inside the other two in the middle of the 2010s.
 

Best Time to Visit
 

In Yucatan, Mexico, the greatest months for weather are November through March. A tour of the historic city would be disagreeable and wet because the rainy season starts after June and the summer months can be oppressively hot. Visit closer to November if you want to avoid the big hordes of tourists seeing Chichen Itza. At this time of year, there are the fewest visitors in the area, allowing for a more personal encounter with the temple city.
Chichen Itza has brief, gloomy, and sweltering summers. These brief summers last from April to June for roughly three months. May is the hottest month, with highs of over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. After the summer, there is a rainy season that lasts from June until October.
 

About Kukulkan Temple 
 

The centerpiece of Chichen Itza is Kukulkan, commonly known locally as El Castillo, which is also the name by which it is most famous. The 75-foot-tall Temple of Kukulkan was built to aid the Mayans in their astronomical undertakings. The bulk of Mesoamerican people worshiped the feathered serpent god Kukulkan, who was known by his Mayan name. Kukulkan was thought to have a human form by the Mayans as well. One of the three primary gods who the Mayans thought created the universe was the feathered serpent god. At the time, it was believed that Kukulkan taught the Mesoamerican people how to grow, manage a whole society, and create medicines to alleviate illnesses and injuries.
The Toltecs constructed the temple of Kukulkan; the Mayans constructed a second temple on top of Kukulkan. You can find another temple built by the ancient Mayans inside the main temple that has steps on one side. The Toltecs had a big impact on architecture since they created the four-sided pyramids. Although the majority of the Toltecs intermarried with the Mayans in the post-classical era, they were originally from central Mexico and invaded Mayan settlements in the Yucatan Peninsula. The Toltecs constructed the temple of Kukulkan; the Mayans constructed a second temple on top of Kukulkan. You can find another temple built by the ancient Mayans inside the main temple that has steps on one side. The Toltecs had a big impact on architecture since they created the four-sided pyramids. Although the majority of the Toltecs intermarried with the Mayans in the post-classical era, they were originally from central Mexico and invaded Mayan settlements in the Yucatan Peninsula. 

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The Structure of Kukulkan 
 

The structure has a height of 24 meters and is situated on a rectangular platform that is 55.5 meters wide (182 ft) (78 feet). Each side of the pyramid has a large staircase with 91 steps per side and one more leading to the upper temple, for a total of 365 steps, one for each day of the year. Precision and intention are part of the essence of the structure. Each staircase has a stone balustrade on either side, and at the bottom of the north staircase are two enormous feathered snake effigies of the god Kukulcan.
 

The Interior Design 
 

The temple was discussed in Friar Diego de Landa's 1566 work, Relación de las cosas de Yucatán (Yucatán at the Time of the Spanish Encounter). Nearly three centuries later, in his 1843 book Incidents of Travel in Yucatán (Incidentes del viaje Yucatán), John Lloyd Stephens provided even more specific details on the temple's architecture. At that time, Juan Sosa controlled the property on which the archaeological site of Chichén Itzá was situated. The book's lithograph illustrations by Frederick Catherwood show the temple surrounded on all sides by lush flora. There are several images from the early 20th century that also depict the temple with the aforementioned greenery partially obscuring it. 
The Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., asked the Mexican government for approval in 1924 to conduct explorations and restoration work in and around Chichen Itza. They began the project in 1927 with the aid of Mexican archaeologists. Despite widely held ideas that the structure of the temple of Kukulcán was built on top of a much earlier temple, excavation and exploration activities started in April 1931 with the aim of confirming that hypothesis. A box containing items covered in coral, obsidian, and turquoise that was discovered with human remains on June 7, 1932 is now on display at the National Anthropology Museum in Mexico City. 
The Temple of Kukulkan (El Templo) is situated above a water-filled pit known as a sinkhole or cenote. Recent archeological research indicates that an earlier construction phase was not centered but rather was situated closer to the southeast cenote. This particular proximity to the cenote raises the possibility that the Maya were aware of its existence and purposely built it there to support their religious beliefs.
A Chac Mool statue with mother of pearl inlaid nails, teeth, and eyes was discovered inside the temple in April 1935 after intensive excavation effort. The "Hall of offerings" or "North Chamber" was the name given to the space where the find was made.
A second room was discovered in August 1936, only a few meters from the first, following more than a year of excavation. Archaeologists discovered a crimson jaguar figure and two parallel rows of human bones in this area, which has been called the "Chamber of Sacrifices." Both human remains dumps were discovered facing north-northeast. Researchers came to the conclusion that the Chac Mool and the jaguar were discovered at the base of an inner temple that was about 33 m (108 ft) wide, shaped like the outer temple, and had nine steps leading up to it.

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