Guatavita

Guatavita
Municipality and town
Coliseum of Guatavita
Seal
Location of the municipality and town of Guatavita in the Cundinamarca Department of Colombia
Guatavita Location in Colombia
Coordinates: 4°56′4″N 73°50′4″W / 4.93444°N 73.83444°W / 4.93444; -73.83444Coordinates: 4°56′4″N 73°50′4″W / 4.93444°N 73.83444°W / 4.93444; -73.83444
Country	Colombia
Department	Cundinamarca
Province	Guavio Province
Founded	18 March 1593
Founded by	Miguel de Ibarra
Government
• Mayor	Robeth Yamit Peña Romero (2016-2019)
Area
• Municipality and town	247.3 km2 (95.5 sq mi)
• Urban	6.84 km2 (2.64 sq mi)
Elevation	2,680 m (8,790 ft)
Population (2015)
• Municipality and town	6,898
• Density	28/km2 (72/sq mi)
• Urban	1,960
Time zone	Colombia Standard Time (UTC-5)
Website	Official website

Guatavita is a municipality and town of Colombia in the Guavio Province of the department of Cundinamarca. Guatavita is located 75 km northeast of the capital Bogotá. It borders Sesquilé and Machetá in the north, Gachetá and Junín in the east, Guasca and Sopó in the south and in the west are and Gachancipá.

Before the Spanish conquest of the Muisca on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense, the central plateau in the Colombian Andes, the area was inhabited by the Muisca organized in their Muisca Confederation. Guatavita was ruled by a cacique who was a powerful figure consulted by the zipas of Bacatá and the zaques of Hunza. Guatavita was specialized in gold working. An important temple honouring Sué, the Sun god in the religion of the Muisca was constructed in Guatavita.

In the Guatavita Lake the new zipa was inaugurated in rituals performed by the cacique of Guatavita, represented by the famous golden Muisca raft. Around 1490 the Battle of Chocontá took place where zaque Michuá was supported by the cacique of Guatavita and lost with their outnumbered army of 60,000 guecha warriors against the zipa Saguamanchica. Both Muisca rulers died in this battle.