Nota: Esta nota tiene una versión original en español
The Cuexcomate, with only 13 meters in height, 8 meters in diameter at ground level, 23 meters in diameter at base level, is considered the smallest volcano in the world.
Because of its appearance, it is called Cuexcomate because it comes from the Nahuatl word “cuexcomatl” which means “clay pot” or “place to keep”.
It is located in the 3 north and 2 east, in Junta Auxiliar La Libertad in the city of Puebla; the small volcano is a symbol of identity for the inhabitants of the auxiliary board.
To access the interior of the volcano, there is a metal spiral staircase that leads to its entrails.
Contrary to popular belief, the Cuexcomate is not a volcano, but a geyser that was formed by the outbreak of hydrogen sulfide water in 1064 due to a very violent eruption of Popocatepetl.
Studies, carried out by geophysicist José Castillo Román, detail that the Cuexcomate material is not volcanic material.
He considers that it is calcareous rocks and the investigation points out that it is a hydrothermal structure, since it is believed that surely in this place there was an aquifer and a hot spring.
Legends
They say that in ancient times, the corpses of suicidal people in Puebla were thrown in the crater, because they did not deserve to be veiled or buried.
Around the same time, the inhabitants neighboring the Cuexcomate, were said to be children of the Devil’s navel.
It is also believed that one of the tunnels that crosses the city of Puebla crosses from the Cerro de Loreto to the Cerro de la Paz and from there down to the Cerro del Cuexcomate, crossing under the Atoyac River to reach the pyramid of Cholula.
Translation done by: Karla Giselle Bonales Ramírez
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POB/LFJ
