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Tourist Filmed Climbing Up Ancient Mayan Pyramid In Front Of Puzzled Crowd

Tourist Filmed Climbing Up Ancient Mayan Pyramid In Front Of Puzzled Crowd

The incident took place at the Chichen Itza archaeological site in Mexico

Rebecca Shepherd

Rebecca Shepherd

This is the moment a tourist climbed up the steep steps of a Mayan pyramid in front of puzzled onlookers before being taken away by the authorities:

The incident took place at the Chichen Itza archaeological site located in the municipality of Tinum in the Mexican state of Yucatan on 3 January.

Chichen Itza was a major Mayan city and home to the 'El Castillo' ('The Castle') pyramid, also known as the Temple of Kukulcan, located in the centre of the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The footage shows the unnamed tourist walking down the steps as a crowd of people watch her and a caption reads: "She is in trouble now."

Newsflash

The woman begins speaking with a man who appears to work at the site when she gets to the bottom and an onlooker yells 'fine.'

Further videos show the moment the woman slowly climbs up the pyramid and is even forced to get on her stomach due to the steepness of the steps before reaching the top.

Initial reports claimed that she climbed the pyramid to keep a promise she made to her late husband to spread his ashes at the site.

However, the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) denied she threw ash or any other objects into the pyramid in a statement released on 4 January.

However, she was placed in the custody of the municipal police as climbing the pyramid is prohibited.

Newsflash

Local sources said the woman, who has been locally dubbed 'Lady Kukulcan', is from the city of Tijuana in the Mexican state of Baja California.

Local newspaper El Universal said that staff told INAH representatives that the woman had 'diminished capacities due to drunken effects' but the claim has not been confirmed by authorities.

The same report added that the authorities have launched an investigation on the incident, but the sanctions the tourist faces and her motives for breaking site rules are unclear.

In the statement from 4 January, the Ministry of Culture of the Government of Mexico, through the INAH, said: "The security personnel of the archaeological zone, in a peaceful manner, exhorted said person to come down from the pre-Hispanic structure and, once down, she was placed at the disposal of the municipal police."

The Temple of Kukulcan measures 79 feet high at the top of the stairs but is 98 feet high if the temple on top is included.

Climbing the step-pyramid was allowed until 2006 after a woman fell to her death.

Featured Image Credit: Newsflash

Topics: News, Weird