Cerro de la Estrella National Park facts for kids

A walking path in Cerro de la Estrella National Park.

Cerro de la Estrella National Park is a special place in eastern Mexico City. It's located in the Iztapalapa area. This park is centered around a mountain called Cerro de la Estrella.

The park was created in 1938. It was much bigger then, about 1,100 hectares. But over time, Mexico City has grown a lot. This growth has made the park much smaller, now less than 200 hectares. The park is important for fun activities and culture. It also protects the mountain itself. This mountain is very special because of its ancient history. It was the site of the old New Fire ceremony. Today, it hosts the famous Passion Play. You can find old temples and homes here. There are also petroglyphs (rock carvings) and structures from the Teotihuacan culture. Sadly, the park and its ancient sites are in danger. People are building on its land, farming, leaving trash, and even drawing graffiti.

What is Cerro de la Estrella Park Like?

The park was first set up in 1938. Back then, it was about 1,100 hectares (that's like 2,700 acres!). Today, it's much smaller. It's now between 143 and 192 hectares. The park is completely inside Mexico City. It's in the Iztapalapa area. It also touches the Tláhuac and Milpa Alta areas. Big roads like Calzada Ermita Iztapalapa are nearby.

Most of the park is managed by a government group. Their goal is to make it a fun and cultural spot. They also want to bring more visitors to the area. This park is one of the most used green spaces in the city. Sometimes, people farm there. There are also homes built without permission. Some areas are used for animals to graze. People even dig for minerals or dump garbage there. There's even a cemetery inside the old park boundaries. A wall has been built around parts of the park. This helps protect the ancient sites from nearby neighborhoods.

Nature in the Park

The park is built around Cerro de la Estrella. This is a small mountain. It stands about 2,450 meters (8,038 feet) above sea level. It's about 224 meters (735 feet) taller than the city around it. This makes it the highest point in the Iztapalapa area. The hill is also called Huizachtepetl. This means "mountain of thorns." It was formed by volcanoes. It's part of a small mountain range. This range is called the Sierra de Santa Catarina. The area also helps refill the underground water supplies. These are called aquifers.

The original wild animals that lived here are now gone. Most animals you see today are small rodents. This includes squirrels. The trees you see are mostly Eucalyptus and pine trees. There are also some white cedar trees. All these trees were planted again. This was part of projects to regrow the forest.

Hilltop view of Mexico City from the park.

Fun Things to Do in the Park

The park has many fun things for visitors. You can find picnic tables and grills. There are also playgrounds for kids. Sports facilities are available too. A lookout point at the top of the hill offers amazing views. You can go hiking and running in the park. The picnic area is managed by the local government. They also offer activities for school children.

The lookout point is one of the best places to see Mexico City. It has benches with old designs. There are also five telescopes to help you see far away.

The mountain has many small caves. These caves have led to many local stories. Some stories are about ghosts or lost youths. Another tale says there's a secret tunnel. It supposedly connects the hill to a cemetery.

The hill and park are famous for an annual event. It's called the Passion Play. This play happens every year. It goes up the main road of the park. It ends at the Museo del Fuego Nuevo. Thousands of people come to watch the Passion Play. The main part is a reenactment of the Crucifixion. This happens at a spot called Calvario. This spot is actually the base of an ancient pyramid.

Park History

President Lázaro Cárdenas created the park in 1938. It was very large then, about 1,100 hectares. But Mexico City has grown a lot. This growth has taken over much of the park land. The park is now about 90% smaller. All its wild plants are gone. The trees you see today were planted later.

Ancient Times in the Park

People have lived in this park area for a very long time. They were here from at least the middle of the Pre-Classic period. They stayed until the Spanish conquest. And people still live there today. The first villages were on the mountain slopes. The biggest settlement was Culhuacan. It was founded around 900 CE. The Mexica people took control of the area by the 1400s.

In ancient times, Cerro de la Estrella was called Huizachtecatl. This means "Sacred Mountain." It was the site of the important New Fire ceremony. This ceremony happened every 52 years. The most important ancient remains in the park are linked to this ceremony. The last New Fire ceremony was in 1507. Today, the hill is still culturally important. It's where Iztapalapa's annual Passion Play takes place.

Archaeological Discoveries

Archaeologists have found many things at the Cerro de la Estrella archaeological site. These finds are from different cultures. They include the Teotihuacan, Toltec, Chichimeca, and Culhua-Mexica cultures. The items date from 1500 BCE to 1521 CE.

Excavations have uncovered the Temple of the New Fire. They also found the Sanctuary and Villa Estrellas. There are 144 caves and old walls. Evidence of terraced farming has also been found. The most important discovery is the old plaza and temple. This is where the New Fire Ceremony took place. It's located at the top of the hill. You can visit this archaeological site with a guided tour.

Older archaeological remains are found all over the park. Some are now covered by city buildings. In 2003, experts from INAH (a national history institute) studied the rock carvings. They found 210 petroglyphs in eleven groups. They believe there are even more. Some of these carvings line up with the sun's position at certain times of the year.

The newest discovery was in 2006. A pyramid base was found at the top of the mountain. This base is from the Teotihuacan period. That's about 1,300 years ago! INAH has decided not to dig up this base.

Dangers to the Park

Shrinking Park Size

Since it was created in 1938, the park has gotten much smaller. It went from 1,100 hectares to about 143 to 192 hectares. This happened because people built homes on the land without permission. Even a cemetery, Panteón Civil San Nicolás Tolentino, is now inside the original park area. These homes were often built by people who couldn't afford other housing. Later, these groups tried to make their land ownership legal.

To try and stop this, new laws were made. In 1999, it was called an Ecological and Cultural Zone. In 2007, it was protected under a law for historical sites. But these efforts haven't fully saved the park. As of 2009, about 180 families lived inside the park itself. The 2007 law made the park an archaeological zone. But the INAH agency hasn't moved the people living there. Instead, they only ask that buildings be no more than two stories tall. They also ask to be told before any big digging happens. This way, they can save any ancient items found. To stop more building, two parts of a border wall were built. The last part was built in 2009.

Another danger is that people use the land for farming. They also use it for animals to graze. Sometimes, fires are started to clear space for this.

Damage to Ancient Sites

Many of the rock carvings (petroglyphs) and caves in the park are in danger. The park has over 200 petroglyphs at risk. The Matlolotzin group of petroglyphs is on the south side of the hill. These are the most damaged by graffiti. Some have even been erased using acid. This makes it look like there's no history there to protect.

There are also over 110 small caves. These caves are important for geology and culture. They show signs that people lived there long ago. Some easy-to-reach caves have been damaged by people. This includes dancers who use them for ceremonies. The Passion Play brings thousands of visitors. They also sometimes damage areas, including the caves.

Many caves were blocked off by people who took over the land. More caves have been filled with garbage and graffiti.

See also

In Spanish: Parque nacional Cerro de la Estrella para niños