Teotihuacan's monumental pyramid construction and 2024 DNA study on its builders. Around 100 CE, when Teotihuacan's population reached 20,000, the city built the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon on a scale unseen in Mesoamerica. The Pyramid of the Sun was built in a single phase around 100 CE. The Pyramid of the Moon was expanded over seven construction phases from 100 to about 350 CE.
Around 100 CE, with Teotihuacan at 20,000 people, builders constructed the Pyramids of the Sun and Moon. The Sun rose in one phase; the Moon grew across seven phases (100-350 CE). The Avenue of the Dead and Temple of Quetzalcoatl formed Mesoamerica's largest ceremonial center. A 2024 DNA study confirmed local builders (mtDNA A2, B2, D1).
Key Facts
- Around 100 CE, when Teotihuacan's population reached 20,000, the city built the Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon on a scale unseen in Mesoamerica.
- The Pyramid of the Sun was built in a single phase around 100 CE.
- The Pyramid of the Moon was expanded over seven construction phases from 100 to about 350 CE.
- The Avenue of the Dead and the Temple of Quetzalcoatl were also built during this period, forming the largest ceremonial center ever built in Mesoamerica.
- Dating is based on thousands of carbon-14 and archaeomagnetic dating samples collected over decades.
- A 2024 DNA study found burials at Teotihuacan belonged to people of Central Mexican genotypes, predominantly mtDNA haplogroups A2, B2, and D1, confirming homegrown Mesoamerican builders rather than a foreign population.
Related site: Teotihuacan — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.
Source: The Real Origins of Teotihuacan? by Archaeologist Ed Barnhart