The Cosmovitral is a stained glass mural and botanical garden located in Toluca, Mexico. The building takes its name from the mural which is set in the building's huge windows that surround the building and in the ceiling. The building originally was constructed in 1910 as the 16 de Septiembre Market. It was not until 1975 when the first female Mayor of Toluca, Yolanda Sentíes, had the 16 de Septiembre Market reallocated and successfully gauged enough social and political support to transform the building into a space for art. El cosmovitral was designed by the notable local artisan Leopoldo Flores.
Calixtlahuaca (from the Nahuatl, where calli means "house", and ixtlahuatl means "prairie" or "plains", hence the translation would be "house in the prairie") is a Postclassic period Mesoamerican archaeological site, located near the present-day city of Toluca in the State of Mexico. Known originally as "Matlatzinco", this urban settlement was a powerful capital whose kings controlled a large territory in the Toluca Valley.
Nevado de Toluca (Spanish: ) is a large stratovolcano in central Mexico, located about 80 km west of Mexico City near the city of Toluca. It is generally cited as the fourth highest of Mexico's peaks, after Pico de Orizaba, Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl, although by some measurements, Sierra Negra is slightly higher.
Teotenango was in important pre-Hispanic fortified city located in the southern part of the Valley of Toluca. It was initially founded during the last stages of the Teotihuacan civilization by a group generally referred to as the “Teotenancas.” Later, the Matlatzincas conquered the city and expanded it. The city existed for about 1,000 years, being abandoned only after the Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire. The name Teotenango is derived from three Nahuatl words: “teotl” (god, sacred, divine, authentic or original), “tenamitl” (wall, fence or fortification) and “co” (place or in) which lends itself to different translations such as “in the place of the divine wall,” or “in the place of the original fortification” or “in the place of the all of the gods.” However, “teotl” began to be used to distinguish this pre-Hispanic site from the town that was constructed in the valley below by the Spanish after the Conquest. This is confirmed by the Teutenanco Chronicles, written in 1582, but the Original Chronicles of Chalco-Amaquemecan state that the site was also known as “Cozcuauhtenanco” (walled place of the buzzards) due to the Teotenaca-Matlatzinca military order that protected the city. At its height, the city was densely population with a main road about 1,400 meters long, pyramidal platforms, palaces, a ballgame court, formidable defenses, drainage and water delivery systems. All around the site there are naturally protruding rocks containing petroglyphs with various signs and symbols. However, only a fraction of the site, mostly the northeast section which contained the ceremonial center, has been excavated and preserved.
