Cenote-zone

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A cenote or cenode is an underground pool in the northern Yucatán Peninsula. There are more than 3,000 cenotes of which about 1400 have been studied and recorded.

The word comes from the Mayan word tso'ono'ot, dzonot old spelling, which means abyss. The pools are formed by filling with water from the fissures that are part of the rim of the Chicxulub crater. There are four types of cenotes:

underground
superficial (ponds / lakes)
semi-underground and
superficial sources.
In this region there are no surface rivers. The water seeps through the porous soil and flows through underground rivers to the sea. This is called a karst phenomenon. In some places the rock softened and collapsed. Underground, water-filled cavities occured, creating the cenotes.

At the time of Chichén Itzá, the pools were used for human sacrifice and underwater archeology are now the victims of the water. The human sacrifices were probably brought to the rain god Chac. In this relatively dry area rain was sparse and ensuring regular rainfall was an important wish of the Mayans.

Cenote Sagrado De was full of sacrifices, including more than one hundred people, including a five meters thick blue layer was deposited by the Mayans.

In Europe similar structures, see gouffre.

*Rough translation of Dutch through Google Translate. If you can easily translate dutch to english, please correct any mistakes.