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Iztaccíhuatl (alternative spellings include Ixtaccíhuatl or either variant spelled without the accent) is the third highest mountain in Mexico, after Pico de Orizaba (5,610m) and Popocatépetl (5,452m).
The mountain has three peaks, the highest of which is 5,286 m above sea level. Together, the three are seen as depicting the head, chest, and feet of a sleeping female figure. Iztaccíhuatl is a mere 70 km to the southeast of Mexico City and is often visible from the capital, depending on atmospheric conditions.
While the first recorded ascent was made in 1889, archaeological evidence suggests that the Aztecs and previous cultures also climbed the mountain.
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The Legend of Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl
In Aztec mythology, Iztaccíhuatl was a princess who fell in love with one of her father's warriors. Her father sent her lover to a war in Oaxaca, promising him his daughter as his wife if he returned (which Iztaccíhuatl's father presumed he would not). Iztaccíhuatl was told her lover was dead and she died of grief. When he returned, he in turn died of grief over losing her. The gods covered them with snow and changed them into mountains. Iztaccíhuatl's mountain was called "Sleeping Woman" because it resembles a woman laying on her back. He became the volcano Popocatépetl, raining fire on Earth in blind rage at the loss of his beloved.de:Iztaccíhuatl it:Iztaccíhuatl