The Mayan city of Coba is the largest in their empire. The city was estimated to have housed 100,000 people at the height of its operation between 400AD and 900AD. Located in the Yucatan peninsula (Present day state of Quintana Roo, Mexico. Quintana Roo is now referred to as the Mayan RIveria), it was an important city in the Mayan civilization. The city was not only important, it was also very large. To the northwest lay the city of Chichen Itza and 50km to the east lay the city of Tulum (Zama). In 900AD, the inhabitants left the area for some unknown reason. Like many civilizations whose foundation is based on oppression of the people, human sacrifice and filled with moral decay, it fell suddenly and its inhabitants departed.

It remains amazing to consider that the structures they constructed were done so without metal tools or use of the wheel. The Mayans had the wheel, yet they considered it sacred, and limited its use to religious purposes.

The city covers an area of 50 square miles. Within that space only a small portion of the 6,500 structures located at the site have been uncovered. Of those an even smaller number have been restored. The area surrounding the ruins are filled with jungles and several lakes. The trees which were once cultivated to provide food for the population and decorate the plazas have since gone wild. The plazas of the complex, which at one time were prepared by clear cutting have since become overgrown with vines and tropical foliage. The area also contains several lakes, from which the city obtained its name (waters stirred by the wind). These lakes are filled with fish and alligators.

The area is criss-crossed with raised sacbes (ancient roads) that connect it with other communities. The sacbes were constructed of crushed white stones so that they would be visible at night. There are 42 of these roads criss crossing the area. The longest of these sacbe is 62 miles in length, which is the longest in the Mayan world. Bicycles are available for rent, which help in traversing the large site.

The legendary explorer, John Paul Stephens heard of the site’s existence but never visited its location. His expeditions to Mayan sites were often the first awareness the world had of their existence. The site of Coba was discovered in 1891 by Teoberto Maler .Since there was great unrest in the Yucatan at that time, further exploration was not possible. The explorer finding the site did not immediately publish his findings, so the site remained in obscurity until 1926, when another explorer, led by a Mayan hunting party reached the site and documented its existence.

It was not until 1973 that any restoration efforts were undertaken at the site. It was at that time that a highway was finally constructed that allowed access to the remote location. A second highway was constructed in the 1980's which improved accesibility. Even with the improved accesibility, Coba does not have the tourist numbers fo Chichen Itza, not has it been reconstructed to a large degree. It has been estimated that for every structure restored, there are 20 more unreconstructed in the nearby jungles.The jungles are often thick with underbrush, which limits access to them.

It is also home to the Nohoc Mul pyramid (meaning big mound), which is the largest in the Yucatan at 126 feet high. The pyramid has 120 steps to reach the platform and structure at the top. The steps are often steep, requiring those ascending to focus their attention on the task. A guide informed us that it was done that way in order to force those ascending to look down (bow their heads) while climbing it.

During the ascent, the climber goes through the 13 levels of heaven in accordance with Mayan myths. These levels were included in the construction of the pyramid. The structure is designed as a living illustration of Mayan beliefs. From the top, other pyramid structures can be seen, which have not been excavated yet. Being that the land in the Quintana Roo/Yucatan section of the area is flat, the pyramid offers a long reaching vista. On the top of the pyramid is a rectangular structure. The structure at the top is embellished with carved images of the ‘descending god’ which is prominent on the nearby ruins of Tulum (Zuma) as well. This descending god image is associated with the planet Venus.The city of Coba is known to have conducted trade with city of Tulum.

The second largest pyramid at the site is known as la iglesia (the church) due to the fact that many Mayans continue leaving gifts of worship and incense on the steps of the structure. Although visitors are not allowed to climb to the top of this crumbling structure, they do have access to some of the interior rooms.

The tallest Mayan pyramid is located in the Petan region of Guatemala. Stories indicate that a priest from Coba married a queen from Tikal which shares similar tall pyramid structures.

Coba is also significant for being home to the oldest recorded Mayan date on a Stela (carved stone). The date is around 600AD. The site also contained information which allowed people to decode the Mayan calender and its secrets, which is a popular topic, since the year 2012 is when the Mayans predicted the end of this earth period.

Coba is also home to the only Mayan pyramid with rounded corners. Some Mayan academics believe it to be a watchtower used to keep a look out on the sacbes criss-crossing the area. Since there were some conflicts between the inhabitants of Chichen Itza and those at Coba, the need for lookouts was important.

The city of Coba has several pyramids, and several small ball courts. Although slaves were often used in the ball games, the ones at Coba were not on the scale of those played at Chichen Itza, nor did the winning team captain loose his head at the end of the ball game. The walls of the courts are constructed at an angle rather than the perpendicular ones at Chichen Itza.The smallerball court size suggests that the ball games at Coba were not the spectacle that they were at Chichen Itza, where the court is significantly larger and the population smaller. In recent times, re-enactors have revived the court ball games at Coba and other Mayan sites.

The intrigue of Coba takes on new significance based on the discussions of the Mayan calendar and the concern with predictions associated with the year 2012. The stella on which the 2012 predictions are based is located at Coba. Many of the ideas are based on material found in the book, "Solving the Greatest Mystery of our Time: The Mayan Calendar" published by Gareve Publishing International in 2001.  ISBN: 0-9707558-0-5

The stele on which the material is based is very eroded. The inscriptions are visible, yet the erosion raises questions about the detail of the inscription. The stele on which the predictions are based on Mayan beliefs concerning how the world goes through cycles. Each cycle represents a new age.

The counting of the cycles begins at 14-16 million years. This gives a 2 million year range of occurrence, which is not very scientific or precise. The cycles are based on the myth of an evolutionary creation which supposes that it took place 16,861,000,000 years ago.  Based on this assumption, the year 2012 represents the end of a cycle and beginning of a new one which will take us from the planetary to the galactic cycle.There are supposed to be nine cycles. The 2012 represents going from the 7th cycle to the 8th cycle.

The pyramid constructed at Coba is reportedly built to illustrate these nine cycles as well.