Chichen Itza has been called one of the seven wonders of the modern world. Among its main structures, El Castillo, El Caracol (or observatory), the Ball Court, and the Temple of a thousand columns stand out.

One of the most important finds in Chichén Itzá was the sacred cenote, from which various offerings and bones were extracted from the maidens who were sacrificed to the gods, and sometimes also the prisoners of war were sacrificed and thrown into that seemingly bottomless pit.

Undoubtedly one of the most important archaeological sites of the Mayan culture in Yucatan, El Castillo was one of the great temples that were built near the end of the splendor of that culture.

Palenque is a Cultural Heritage of Humanity, it is located in the state of Chiapas, and its magnificent sculptures and buildings tell us the story of the man who tries to understand and explain the universe.

Its most important building is the Great Palace, the Temple of the Inscriptions, the Temple of the Foliated Cross, and the Great Ball Court.

One of the most important finds in Palenque was undoubtedly the tomb of Pakal II, whose stela adorns this entrance, and although there are many theories, it is most likely that the tree of life is portrayed, pointing the roots towards the underworld that was mysterious and attractive to the Mayans.

Without a doubt, the palace is its most important construction, since over 400 years it was built in various styles, with various architectural elements such as a tower, four patios, foundations, and stairways, among others.

One of the greatest exponents of the Puuc route is the archaeological zone of Uxmal, its main buildings are the Pyramid of the Magician, the Quadrangle of the Nuns, and the House of the Doves.

Among its ruins were stupendous masks of Chaac (god of rain) and also stelae with hieroglyphics.

One of the things that visitors can enjoy in Uxmal is the “light and sound show”, since entering an archaeological zone at night gives you a different perspective of how it is during the day.

In addition, those shows designed by the INAH allow you to enter to learn about the history and daily life of the ancient inhabitants of the place.

Tajin, Veracruz

One of the most beautiful pre-Hispanic buildings, it is undoubtedly the pyramid of the Nichos de Tajín, located in the state of Veracruz is a great exponent of the Totonaca culture.

Niches, reliefs, and mural paintings are the silent witnesses of that city that was known as the city of smoking temples since copal was constantly burned in its buildings.

It has 17 ball courts, which archaeologists have interpreted as a sign of multiculturalism since it was inhabited for almost 900 years, which speaks of periods of evolution within the same ethnic group.

One of the archaeological sites with which Mexico is identified is undoubtedly Teotihuacán, it is one of the most important ancient cities in the center of the country, Its name in Nahuatl means “city of the gods”.

At its time of maximum splendor, it had 100 thousand inhabitants. Its privileged location in a valley rich in natural resources made it a city as well as important for its architecture, an economic, political, religious, and cultural center of the time.

The most impressive thing is that even today we do not finish unraveling all its secrets, although we know that since Aztec times it was considered a sacred site.

Its extension available to the public is 264 hectares, in them, you can find the Pyramid of the Sun, the Pyramid of the Moon, the Citadel, the Calzada de Los Muertos, the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, so without a doubt, the best thing is to go to visit it and fill yourself with the energy and history that still lives within its walls.

One of the few archaeological sites found in the north of the country is Paquimé, which is located in the state of Chihuahua, a culture that adapted to fight and survive in the great expanse of the Chihuahuan desert and that left evidence of it with the impressive structures.

The most striking thing about Paquimé is perhaps the impressive play of light and shadows that are made when the sun shines from different heights in those labyrinths that housed hundreds of rooms, some with a very specific function and others simply residential.

The archaeological wealth of Yaxchilán is not only in its buildings but in the texts found on its stelae, altars, and lintels, which narrate the history of that city-state, with everything and its warlike conflicts, its alliances, and the exploits of its rulers.

One of the peculiarities of Yaxchilán is that it must be reached by boat with an outboard motor crossing the Usumacinta River. You should not miss the Acropolis, the Labyrinth, or the Ball Court, silent witnesses of the splendor of this city.

From the top of Structure 33, one of the tallest buildings in Chiapas archaeology, it is possible to observe the meandering Usumacinta River and also a part of the Guatemalan Petén, another area where the Mayan culture flourished.

Your visit can be even more enjoyable with good binoculars to observe the Lacandon Jungle from its acropolis.

Just 10 kilometers from the city of Oaxaca, is Monte Albán, a vestige of the Zapotec and Mixtec culture, since, like many of the pre-Hispanic cities, it was inhabited by different cultures over time.

According to its architecture, it has been determined that it was in contact with the powerful Teotihuacán.

Its main structures are the Ball Court, the Dancers Building, and the South Platform. In the esplanade called Great Plaza, the merchants were located to set up the market.

This city was founded around 500 BC. C. at the top of a hill in the central valleys of Oaxaca, it had up to 35 thousand inhabitants who lived on architecture, pottery, and mural painting.

One of the best-known images of Cholula is that of the church on a mound with the Popocatepetl as a backdrop, and it is that according to the story, the Spaniards tried to replace the indigenous gods with their God, and for this, they destroyed the ancient temples and built their churches on them. More or less this is the history of this city of Puebla, which is said to have more than 300 churches.

But speaking of the archaeological zone, we must mention Tlachihualteptl (which means hill made by hand), the pyramid on which the church of the Virgen de Los Remedios is built and whose base is 450 meters long on each side.

The Toltecs expelled from Tula were the ones who built this archaeological zone.

Cholula’s strategic location made it a privileged place for trade between the various pre-Hispanic ethnic groups, it has amazing murals in good condition of conservation that by themselves make it worth the visit.

A walled city that overlooks the Caribbean Sea from above, this is Tulum, a sacred site for the Mayans, which despite being so close to the sea, has murals and structures in very good condition. In Mayan, it received the name of Zamá, which means sunrise.

The Castle, on the highest part of the cliff, has on its facades sculptures of the descending god, who has sometimes been associated with Chaac, the god of rain, there is also the temple of the frescoes in whose corners you can also see masks of Chaac.

The visit to the site will take perhaps an hour and a half, but if you have a chance, I recommend you go down to the beach and take a quick dip, or at least a foot soak in the warm waters of the Caribbean.

Nohoch Mul is the highest pyramid in Cobá, previously, when it was possible to climb it, from the highest part there were three freshwater lagoons that the Mayans used to supply themselves. One of its most impressive and well-preserved structures is the Ball Court.

Many of the centuries-old trees that grew on the structures have been respected, giving them an overwhelming air.

The archaeological zone of Cobá is quite extensive, so after visiting the main buildings, I recommend renting a bicycle or a tricycle with a driver to reach the structures furthest from the entrance.

Its stelae tell us the history of this site, that although it was not inhabited by the ruling class, it did have a sacbé of more than 100 kilometers that reached a city near Chichén Itzá.

Of the eminently commercial character, Comalcalco (city of the Comales), is the westernmost city in the Mayan world, in it, objects that belonged to ethnic groups from other latitudes have been found both in the north of Mexico and south of Central America.

The Chontales who inhabited this area (and whose descendants still live there), were born merchants, even reaching Cacaxtla in Tlaxcala. In this place, the cultivation of cocoa was and is to this day one of the most fruitful economic activities.

The North Plaza, the Acropolis, and the Tomb of the Nine Lords are the best-preserved structures, and one of the attractions of this place is the contrast between the well-kept green areas and the grey and yellowish tones of the walls.

If you are a nature lover, and you love to observe flora and fauna, Calakmul is a city that you cannot miss on your itinerary to Campeche. In the middle of the biosphere reserve is the archaeological zone which means two adjacent mounds.

Much of the history of this site was captured in its stelae and in the beautiful wall paintings that are not yet open to the public as they are being prepared to be exhibited. Within the site, you can visit extensive ceremonial squares and places destined for the dwellings of the inhabitants.

Its majestic palace is a tall construction that dominates the jungle and if you arrive very early, from its summit you will be able to admire how little by little the blanket of fog that covers the place is rising at night.

The mural paintings that Bonampak houses are among the most representative of the Mayan world, many have been studies have been conducted to try to determine who are the portrayed characters and what passages of history each of those painted walls tell us.

On the Acropolis, there is Building I, in whose three rooms 112 square meters of these murals are preserved, which archaeologists have unraveled speak of a long battle.

Getting to Bonampak is not an easy task, because, after several forks in the road, you will find a dirt road that after 8 kilometers leads to a place from where you will be transported by vehicles from the Lacandon community.

Its name means Star Jaguar (according to other translators, it means Black Jaguar), and its Acropolis contains one of the most impressive examples of stucco work carried out by the Mayans. That palace was built as a tomb for one of their kings.

Inside it contains a ramp that the priests and rulers used so that the people did not see them ascend, but they saw them already at the top of the palace, which is one of the main doors is adorned with what looks like the jaws of a jaguar, and it is also possible to see human beings with wings as if they were angels.

From the entrance of the site you can be surprised with a magnificent Mayan arch, a sample of the advanced architecture of its architecture, also in its heyday, the city was protected by a double wall that had access at each cardinal point.

The place of red corn, this is how the name of Chacchoben translates, was one of the most important settlements in the lake area, and began to be populated before the birth of Christ, since the bodies of water attracted the inhabitants to settle around it, let us remember that in Quintana Roo there are only underground rivers.

The different buildings remind us of the style of other sites of the Mayan culture, but due to its size, one of the great temples that we see at the beginning of these paragraphs stands out, two stelae have also been found on the site and there are still sites to be explored.

Cacaxtla contains some murals that could well be confused with those of Bonampak due to their aesthetics, it was a city that after the fall of Cholula had the hegemony of the Puebla-Tlaxcala area.

It was a ceremonial center, a fortified city, it had defensive walls and moats and residential areas for the elite.

Its murals combine Mayan and Altiplano features, in one of the most imposing you can see the scene of a battle between Olmec jaguar warriors and Huastec birdmen who are clearly losing the fight, and some are shown naked or in different states of dismemberment.

The Great Basamento is its most important structure, in fact, different ceremonial buildings were built in it and it is where the priests had their homes.

Cantona, although it has only been open to the public for a short time, was a rival of Teotihuacán, in fact, it diverted the goods that were supposed to arrive in that city, which contributed to its decline. However, their power was hampered by a climate change that drained the lands and forced them to emigrate.

Obsidian was one of the main products that they traded and worked on in their various workshops, and in fact, being so close to the Citlaltépetl volcano from which they extracted it, it was possible for them to dominate the trade of this very valuable good for the ethnic groups of the center of the country.

In addition, due to its privileged position, it controlled trade between the center and the gulf side.

Cantona is considered the most urbanized city in pre-Hispanic Mexico, as evidenced by the more than 500 streets and 3 thousand residential patios that have been discovered, as well as its roads of more than a kilometer in length.

So far 24 ball courts have been discovered, which shows the great importance of this site.

Settled on a group of low hills, Xochicalco was one of the most important cities in Mesoamerica after the fall of Tenochtitlán, it has civic, residential, and religious buildings, as well as moats and walls, which tells us about a war era in the one that each city wanted to control its own territory.

Among the constructions that you can visit is the Great Pyramid, in the central plaza, the South Ball Court, and the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpents, which suggests that some southern Mayan groups would have emigrated to Xochicalco before the fall of their cities.

In this archaeological zone, you will find a rather peculiar observatory because it is located inside a cave that is accessed through a stairway carved in stone.

Tamtoc was a political and religious center that came to house up to 16,000 inhabitants, it was home to the Huasteca culture, which we know from its buildings with a circular base or with rounded corners. The inhabitants of Tamtoc were mainly engaged in astronomy and hydraulic engineering.

The other economic activities of Tamtoc were agriculture mainly of beans and corn, fishing and hunting of animals. Its inhabitants were sedentary and knew how to work obsidian, flint, gold, basalt, and copper.

An important characteristic of this culture is that it gave a very special value to women since she was considered a living symbol of fertility and also the owner of time due to her menstrual cycles.

In Colima due to its climate, and the some rains that usually fall each year, it is difficult to find pre-Hispanic settlements, however, there is the Potrero de la Campana, named like this because, before the excavation, the hill looked like a bell due to its trapezoidal shape.

Here you will find the famous shaft tombs, places where bodies and rich offerings were deposited, and which were accessed by a vertical shaft.

It is located between the Colima and Pereira rivers, which despite having little rainfall during the year, ensured their water supply. Its platforms are circular or quadrangular and it is possible to appreciate a Ball Game and innumerable petroglyphs.

One of the things that most attracts the attention of La Campana is its drainage and water distribution network, which tells us about advanced hydraulic engineering.

One of the most important settlements in the Guadiana Valley was in La Ferrería Durango, in it more than twenty structures with religious functions, housing, pyramids, patios have been identified, in short, almost all types of pre-Hispanic structures are found here.

There is evidence of astronomical observation, also of good hydraulic knowledge, since they used channels to evacuate rainwater. The House of the Leaders preserves its original drains and is oriented towards the Temascal hill, very important for the ruling elite.

There are also several engraved rocks in the area that tell us stories of daily life, hunting scenes, fertility rituals associated with the female figure, a representation of the birth of the sun, among others.

Mictlán was the name given in Nahuatl to the place of the dead, Hispanicized it remained in Mitla, this city of Zapotec and Mixtec origin surprises with the abundant decoration on its facades, made of limestone rock mosaics that form frets, and that it could remind us of the decorative motifs of other archaeological sites.

After the fall of Monte Albán, it was the most important site in Oaxaca, it contains five sets of monumental architecture.

Also in Mitla, the evangelizers built a church on one of its main palaces, this is how we see the church of San Pablo on that structure.

Monolithic columns are very important, as they were used both as structural and decorative elements. The stones for the construction of the San Pablo temple were obtained from the destruction of other pre-Hispanic structures and temples.

The Tarascans were a parallel culture in relevance to the Mexica, the big difference is that those of Michoacán were not so warlike, however, when they were attacked by the Tenochcas they had no qualms about fighting them and stopping them in their tracks, inflicting severe defeats on the most powerful Mexican rulers: Atzayácatl, Ahuizadotl, and Moctezuma Xocoyotzin.

The domain of the Tarascans extended from the Lerma River to the Balsas, occupying more than 75 thousand square kilometers. The city of Tzintzuntzan has a sobriety and austerity that contrasts with the ornamentation of the temples that the Spanish had the Tarascans built.

The name has to do with the hummingbird, a bird of great importance both for the Mexica for whom it represented the god Huitzilopochtli and for the Tarascans for whom it represented the god Tzintzuuquixu.

A place dedicated to trading, which had influence throughout Mesoamerica is Tula, they controlled the turquoise trade, and their occupation began at the same time that Teotihuacán began its decline.

The Giants or Atlanteans of Tula are very tall sculptures representing warriors.

While Quetzalcóatl reigned in those places, the palaces covered with feathers and jade were common, and due to the fertility of their lands, merchants came from other latitudes who brought cocoa, precious metals, jaguar skins, jade, and ceramics from Chiapas and Guatemala.

The Burned Palace and the two Ball Games with their hoops decorated with undulating serpents, are structures that you should not miss, and it is remarkable that the Atlanteans supported a palace, implying that the warfare was the sustenance of the universe.

The Reserve and the contiguous forested areas of the Maya Biosphere Reserve (Reserva de la Biosfera Maya) in the Guatemalan department of El Petén form one of the largest and least disturbed tracts of rainforest in the Americas north of Colombia.

The forest is classified as dry forest to the west and tall and medium-height sub-perennial rainforest to the east. Among the trees, there are ceibas, Honduras mahogany, strangler figs, chaká, and chicle or chicozapote.

The biosphere is home to 86 species of mammals, 18 of which can be found in the Official Registry of Mexican Ecology, a resource that outlines flora and fauna that are in danger of extinction, rare, threatened, or are under protection.

The area is home to 5 of the 6 large cats that are native to Mexico. This includes its small but healthy population of jaguars as well as jaguarundis, ocelots, pumas, and margays.

The fauna also includes Central American agoutis, Geoffroy’s spider monkeys, Guatemalan black howlers, Baird’s tapir, white-nosed coatis, ocellated turkeys, crested guans, toucans, and green parrots.

The reserve has been given a critically threatened designation, which means that prompt measures must be taken to continue to protect and conserve its biodiversity. These threats include Population growth, subsistence hunting and poaching, tourist infrastructure, and the emergence of highways and roads.

The human population within the reserve has been rapidly increasing since the 1980s due to increased migration as well as high birth rates. This has put increasing strain on natural resources due to the locals’ agricultural and ranching subsistence.

Although 80% of the hunting in the reserve is done for personal consumption among the local people, this subsistence hunting has had an increasingly drastic impact on the wildlife populations.

These animals are also being poached by military units that are on active duty within the area.

There has been an increasing amount of tourist activity since the reserve was given the UNESCO designation, which has created several problems. Although water is scarce in the region, the consumable water near villages or towns is reserved for tourists, creating a water shortage among the locals.

There is growing awareness of a possible water crisis due to the inability to meet the needs of the locals and the tourism industry.

Due to problems with the design of the reserve, two main roads have been built that cross through two of the core, important areas of the reserve. There have been proposals for a tourism destination called Maya World which would involve a highway connecting different areas of the biosphere reserve.

Although the plans for the highway have been put aside for the time being, hotel construction continues in those areas.

The area was declared a biosphere reserve by Carlos Salinas de Gortari in 1989. The cited reasons for the designation were the protection of biological diversity, as well as the protection of the numerous ancient Mayan ruins that are within the limits of the reserve.

Since then there has been a disparity between the views and philosophies of the local people who live on the land and those government officials and urban environmentalists who wish to protect its resources.

The people who live on the land are migrants representing 23 of the 32 states of Mexico that were drawn to the land in the 1960s when the Mexican government put land distribution projects in place.

Their cultures may differ, but they share the common identity of “campesinos” and subsistence farmers who live off the land.

As subsistence farmers, they all share the common belief that the environment is a place to work, which contrasts with the agendas of environmentalists and government officials who believe that an “ideal environment is one devoid of human presence”.

These outside parties have the “do not touch” mentality. Thus the Campesinos have created a united front in pushing for access to important resources that enable them to farm and provide for themselves.

In 1991 the Mexican president gave the Campesinos “care for the reserve” which provided funding to aid in the protection of the remaining forests while encouraging self-sufficiency in the local farming sector.

This has been in line with the philosophy that biodiversity is “diversity in use”.

These issues of the debate have led to a resistance movement from the local farmers.

Due to their beliefs surrounding the uses of the environment and work, many believe that those on the other side of the debate (government officials and urban environmentalists) wish to use the land for their own profitable means.

Many farmers recognize the difference between symbolic and actual land ownership and feel as though the government is undermining their subsistence practices.

Whereas the Campesinos practice subsistence farming and therefore do not receive a salary, there is a high vulnerability that they face from others implementing regulations.

You can dial 078 from any phone, where you can find free information about tourist attractions, airports, travel agencies, car rental companies, embassies and consulates, fairs and exhibitions, hotels, hospitals, financial services, migratory and other issues.

Or dial the toll-free (in Mexico) number 01-800-006-8839.

You can also request information to the email correspondencia@sectur.gob.mx

MORE EMERGENCY NUMBERS:

General Information: 040 (not free)

National Emergency Service: 911

Radio Patrols: 066
Police (Emergency): 060
Civil Protection: +52(55)5683-2222
Anonymous Complaint: 089

Setravi (Transport Mobility): +52(55)5209-9913
Road Emergency: 074

Cruz Roja: 065 o +52(55)5557-5757
Firefighters: 068 o +52(55)5768-3700

Calakmul is an unrivaled tropical reserve that means “two adjacent mounds” in Mayan. Calakmul administered a large domain marked by the extensive distribution of their emblem glyph of the snake head sign, to be read “Kaan”.

Calakmul is a modern name, according to scientists, “ca” means “two”, “lak” means “adjacent”, and “mul” signifies any artificial mound or pyramid, so Calakmul is the “City of the Two Adjacent Pyramids”.

In ancient times the city core was known as Ox Te’ Tuun, meaning “Three Stones”.

Another name associated with the site, and perhaps a larger area around it, is Chiik Naab’.

The lords of Calakmul identified themselves as “K’uhul Kaanal Ajaw” (“Divine Lords of the Snake”), but the connection of the title to the actual site is ambiguous.

Emblem Glyph

At Calakmul’s peak in the 7th century, the polity was known as Kan. Interesting to know is that the title Kan was used at another place before Calakmul became a regional powerhouse.

The Preclassic political state in the Mirador Basin also used the title Kan. There is the idea that, after the collapse of the Mirador state, its refugees migrated north towards Calakmul, where they founded a new Kan polity.

However, epigraphical studies of the monuments at Calakmul show that prior to the 7th century AD the emblem glyph of Calakmul had nothing to do with a snake, but with a bat.

It seems that a different polity ruled there.

The Kan emblem glyph, before being associated with Calakmul, is found (once) at Dzibanché, a site more towards the east. Perhaps during the late 6th/early 7th century, the polity at Dzibanché moved to Calakmul in order to establish a more strategically placed capital.

After Calakmul’s power dwindled in the 8th century, after the rule of Yuknoom Took K’awiil, it appears that the bat emblem glyph made its resurgence. Still, many uncertainties remain and new epigraphical studies have to be done to fill the gaps.

Calakmul is located in Campeche state in southeastern Mexico.

The site is located about 35 km north of the border with Guatemala and 38 km north of the ruins of El Mirador. The ruins of El Tintal are 68 km to the southwest of Calakmul and were linked to both El Mirador and Calakmul itself by a causeway.

Calakmul was about 20 km south of the contemporary city of Oxpemul and approximately 25 km southwest of La Muñeca.

The city is located on a rise about 35 m above a large seasonal swamp lying to the west, known as the El Laberinto Bajo (a Spanish word used in the region to denote a low-lying area of seasonal marshland).

This swamp measures approximately 34 by 8 km and was an important source of water during the rainy season.

The bajo was linked to a sophisticated water-control system including both natural and artificial features such as gullies and canals that encircled a 22 sq km area around the site core, an area considered as Inner Calakmul.

The location of Calakmul at the edge of a bajo provided two additional advantages: the fertile soils along the edge of the swamp and access to abundant flint nodules.

The city is situated on a promontory formed by a natural 35 m high limestone dome rising above the surrounding lowlands. This dome was artificially leveled by the Maya.

During the Preclassic and Classic periods settlement was concentrated along the edge of the El Laberinto bajo, during the Classic period structures were also built on high ground and small islands in the swamp where flint was worked.

At the beginning of the 21st century, the area around Calakmul remained covered by dense forest.

During the 1st millennium AD, the area received moderate and regular rainfall, although there is less surface water available than further south in Guatemala.

Calakumul is now located within the 7,300 sq km Calakmul Biosphere Reserve.

At its height in the Late Classic period, the city is estimated to have had a population of 50,000 inhabitants and to have covered an area of over 70 square kilometers.

The city was the capital of a large regional state with an area of about 13,000 square kilometers. During the Terminal Classic, the city’s population declined dramatically and the rural population plummeted to 10% of its former level.

The Late Classic population density of Calakmul has been calculated at 1000/km² (2564 per square mile) in the site core and 420/km² (1076 per square mile) in the periphery (an area of 122 square kilometers.

Calakmul was a truly urban city and not just an elite center surrounded by commoner residences. The site core of Calakmul was known in ancient times as Ox Te’ Tuun (“Three Stones”) which may have been because of the triadic pyramid Structure 2.

The Calakmul kingdom included 20 secondary centers, among which were large cities such as La Muñeca, Naachtun, Sasilha, Oxpemul, and Uxul.

The total population of these secondary centers has been estimated at 200,000.

The kingdom also included a large number of tertiary and quaternary sites, mostly fairly small and consisting of a number of groups arranged around courtyards, although there are also larger rural sites situated on ridges along the edges of the bajos that include temples, palaces, and stelae.

The total rural population of the kingdom is calculated at 1.5 million people.

The entire population of the Calakmul kingdom, including the city itself and the rural population in the 13,000 square kilometers area of the regional state, is calculated at 1.75 million people in the Late Classic period.

The Emblem Glyph of Calakmul has a greater distribution than the Emblem Glyph of any other Maya city. The Glyph is also found in more hieroglyphic texts than any other Emblem Glyph, including that of Tikal.

Calakmul administered a large domain marked by the extensive distribution of their emblem glyph of the snake head sign, to be read “Kaan”.

Calakmul was the seat of what has been dubbed the Snake Kingdom. At times the city had governance over places as far away as 150 kilometers.

Calakmul has a long occupational history and excavations have revealed evidence from the Middle Preclassic right through to the Postclassic. The causeway network that linked Calakmul with the cities of El Mirador, Nakbe, and El Tintal suggests strong political links between the four cities that may have begun in the Preclassic, when both Calakmul and El Mirador were important cities, and continued into the Classic period when Calakmul itself was the most powerful city in the region. Calakmul was one of the largest and most powerful ancient cities ever uncovered in the Maya lowlands.

Calakmul vs. Tikal

The history of the Maya Classic period is dominated by the rivalry between Tikal and Calakmul, likened to a struggle between two Maya “superpowers”. Earlier times tended to be dominated by a single larger city and by the Early Classic Tikal was moving into this position after the dominance of El Mirador in the Late Preclassic and Nakbe in the Middle Preclassic. However, Calakmul was a rival city with equivalent resources that challenged the supremacy of Tikal and engaged in a strategy of surrounding it with its own network of allies. From the second half of the 6th century AD through to the late 7th century Calakmul gained the upper hand although it failed to extinguish Tikal’s power completely and Tikal was able to turn the tables on its great rival in a decisive battle that took place in AD 695. Half a century later Tikal was able to gain major victories over Calakmul’s most important allies. Eventually, both cities succumbed to the spreading Classic Maya collapse.

The great rivalry between these two cities may have been based on more than competition for resources. Their dynastic histories reveal different origins and the intense competition between the two powers may have had an ideological grounding. Calakmul’s dynasty seems ultimately derived from the great Preclassic city of El Mirador while the dynasty of Tikal was profoundly affected by the intervention of the distant central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan. With few exceptions, Tikal’s monuments and those of its allies place great emphasis upon single male rulers while the monuments of Calakmul and its allies gave greater prominence to the female line and often the joint rule of king and queen.

Preclassic

Calakmul was already a large city in the Preclassic period. The early history of Calakmul is obscure, although a dynastic list has been pieced together that extends back into an ancestral past. This dynasty has been reconstructed in part from Late Classic ceramics from the region of great Preclassic cities of El Mirador and Nakbe. This may mean that Calakmul ultimately inherited its political authority from one of these cities, with its dynasty originating in the Late Preclassic in the Mirador Basin and relocating itself to Calakmul in the Classic period after the collapse of these cities.

Early Classic

Both Calakmul and Tikal were sizeable Preclassic cities that survived into the Classic Period. Early hieroglyphic texts from stelae found in Structure 2 record the probable enthronement of a king of Calakmul in AD 411 and also records a non-royal site ruler in 514. After this there is a gap in the hieroglyphic records that lasts over a century, although the Kaan dynasty experienced a major expansion of its power at this time. The lack of inscriptions recording the events of this period may be either due to the fact that the Kaan dynasty was located elsewhere during this time or perhaps that the monuments were later destroyed.

The earliest legible texts referring to the kings of the Kaan dynasty come from excavations of the large city of Dzibanche in Quintana Roo, far north of Calakmul. A hieroglyphic stairway depicts bound captives, their names and the dates they were captured together with the name of king Yuknoom Che’en I, although the exact context of the king’s name is unclear – the captives may have been his vassals captured by an enemy or they may have been rulers captured by the king of Calakmul. The dates are uncertain but two of them may fall within the 5th century AD. The nearby Quintana Roo site of El Resbalón has a jumbled hieroglyphic text, including a date in 529, that indicates that the city was within the control of the Kaan dynasty.

By the middle of the 6th century AD Calakmul was assembling a far-reaching political alliance, activity that brought the city into conflict with the great city of Tikal. The influence of Calakmul extended deep into the Petén; king Tuun K’ab’ Hix of Calakmul oversaw the enthronement of Aj Wosal to the rulership of Naranjo in 546. Another vassal of Tuun K’ab’ Hix was taken captive by Yaxchilan on the banks of the Usumacinta River in 537.

In 561, the king now known as Sky Witness installed a ruler at the site of Los Alacranes. Sky Witness played a major part in the political events of the Maya region. He became the overlord of the city of Caracol, to the south of Naranjo, which had previously been a vassal of Tikal. In 562, according to a damaged text at Caracol, Sky Witness defeated Tikal itself and sacrificed its king Wak Chan K’awiil, thus ending his branch of the royal dynasty at Tikal. This catastrophic defeat began a 130-year hiatus for Tikal, reflecting an extended period of dominance by Calakmul. This event is used as a marker to divide the Early Classic from the Late Classic. Sky Witness is also mentioned at Okop, a site much further north in Quintana Roo. The last reference to Sky Witness occurs at Caracol and is dated to AD 572. The text is damaged but probably records the death of this powerful king.

Late Classic: War with Palenque

Sky Witness was quickly succeeded by First Axewielder, who is mentioned in a text from Dzibanche celebrating the K’atun-ending of 573. First Axewielder ruled for about six years. In 579 Uneh Chan became king of Calakmul. Uneh Chan engaged in an aggressive campaign in the western Maya region and attacked Palenque on 23 April 599 with his ally Lakam Chak, lord of the small city of Santa Elena 70 kilometres (43 mi) east of Palenque, defeating Palenque’s queen Lady Yohl Ik’nal and sacking the city. The defeat is recorded on a series of hieroglyphic steps at Palenque itself and the event initiated a long-lasting grudge against Calakmul. Lady Yohl Ik’nal survived the battle and ruled for several more years, although she perhaps paid tribute to Calakmul.

Uneh Chan maintained his alliances with cities in the east and he is depicted on Caracol Stela 4 supervising an event involving king Yajaw Te’ K’inich of that city that occurred before 583. Calakmul again sacked Palenque on 7 April 611 under the personal direction of Uneh Chan. Palenque was now ruled by king Ajen Yohl Mat who had gained some sort of independence from Calakmul, provoking the new invasion. The immediate aftermath of this second victory over Palenque involved the deaths of the two most important nobles at the city, Ajen Yohl Mat himself and Janab Pakal, a high-ranking member of the royal family and possibly co-ruler. Janab Pakal died in March 612 and Ajen Yohl Mat a few months later. Their deaths so soon after the sacking of the city suggests that their demise was directly linked to Calakmul’s triumph. Palenque suffered a lengthy decline in its fortunes after this date before it was able to recover from its disastrous war with Calakmul. The wars against Palenque may have been undertaken by Uneh Chan in order to seize control of wealthy trade routes that passed through the western Maya region.

Late Classic: Rebellion at Naranjo

King Yuknoom Chan of Calakmul supervised an event at Caracol in 619. Caracol Stela 22 records the accession of Tajoom Uk’ab’ K’ak’ to the Calakmul throne in 622. Two stelae were erected at Calakmul in 623 but their texts are too badly damaged to reveal the names of the royal couple involved. Approximately at this time Naranjo, a vassal of Calakmul, broke away when its king Aj Wosal died relatively soon after the death of Uneh Chan of Calakmul. Naranjo was independent of Calakmul by at least AD 626, when it was twice defeated by Caracol and Yuknoom Chan may have been attempting to bring Naranjo back under Calakmul control. His attempts were brought to an end by his death in 630. In 631 Yuknoom Head, the new king of Calakmul, finally regained control of Naranjo. Texts relate that the king of Naranjo was already captive at Calakmul on the day that his city was overrun and his punishment on the very same day is described by the word k’uxaj meaning either “tortured” or “eaten”. Yuknoom Head conquered another city in March 636, although the exact site is unknown.

Late Classic: Apogee

The Kaan dynasty was not originally established at Calakmul but rather re-located there in the 7th Century from another city. Calakmul experienced its highest achievements during the reign of king Yuknoom Che’en II, sometimes called Yuknoom the Great by scholars. Yuknoom Che’en II was 36 years old when he came to the throne of Calakmul in AD 636. A significant increase in the production of stelae at the city began with his reign and 18 stelae were commissioned by the king. Yuknoom Che’en II was probably responsible for the construction of the palace complexes that form a major part of the site core.

Late Classic: Calakmul and Dos Pilas

In 629 Tikal had founded Dos Pilas in the Petexbatún region, some 110 kilometres (68 mi) to its southwest, as a military outpost in order to control trade along the course of the Pasión River. B’alaj Chan K’awiil was installed on the throne of the new outpost at the age of four, in 635, and for many years served as a loyal vassal fighting for his brother, the king of Tikal. In AD 648 Calakmul attacked Dos Pilas and gained an overwhelming victory that included the death of a Tikal lord. B’alaj Chan K’awiil was captured by Yuknoom Che’en II but, instead of being sacrificed, he was re-instated on his throne as a vassal of the Calakmul king, and went on to attack Tikal in 657, forcing Nuun Ujol Chaak, the then king of Tikal, to temporarily abandon the city. The first two rulers of Dos Pilas continued to use the Mutal emblem glyph of Tikal, and they probably felt that they had a legitimate claim to the throne of Tikal itself. For some reason, B’alaj Chan K’awiil was not installed as the new ruler of Tikal; instead he stayed at Dos Pilas. Tikal counterattacked against Dos Pilas in 672, driving B’alaj Chan K’awiil into an exile that lasted five years. Calakmul tried to encircle Tikal within an area dominated by its allies, such as El Peru, Dos Pilas and Caracol. In 677 Calakmul counterattacked against Dos Pilas, driving Tikal out and reinstalled B’alaj Chan K’awiil on his throne. In 679 Dos Pilas, probably aided by Calakmul, gained an important victory over Tikal, with a hieroglyphic description of the battle describing pools of blood and piles of heads.

Troubles continued in the east, with renewed conflict between Naranjo and Caracol. Naranjo completely defeated Caracol in 680 but Naranjo’s dynasty disappeared within two years and a daughter of B’alaj Chan K’awiil founded a new dynasty there in 682, indicating that Calakmul had probably intervened decisively to place a loyal vassal on the throne. The patronage of Yuknoom Che’en II as overlord is recorded at a range of important cities, including El Peru where he oversaw the installation of K’inich B’alam as king and strengthened the tie with the marriage of a Calakmul princess to that king. The power of Calakmul extended as far as the north shore of Lake Petén Itzá, where Motul de San José is recorded as its vassal in the 7th century, although it was traditionally aligned with Tikal. Yuknoom Che’en II commanded the loyalty of three generations of kings at Cancuen, 245 kilometres (152 mi) to the south, and supervised the enthronement of at least two of them, in 656 and 677. King Yuknoom Che’en II was involved, directly or indirectly, in the crowning of a king at Moral to the west in Tabasco and one of Yuknoom’s nobles supervised a ritual at Piedras Negras on the Guatemalan bank of the Usumacinta River. Yuknoom Che’en II died in his eighties, probably at the beginning of 686. When he died, Calakmul was the most powerful city in the central Maya lowlands.

Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’ succeeded Yuknoom Che’en II, his crowning on 3 April 686 was recorded on monuments at Dos Pilas and El Peru. He was born in 649 and was likely to have been the son of his predecessor. He already held high office before he was named king and may have been responsible for the major successes of the latter part of Yuknoom Che’en II’s reign. He retained the loyalty of K’inich B’alam of El Peru and B’alaj Chan K’awiil of Dos Pilas and gained that of K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Chaak in 693, when he was installed on the throne of Naranjo at the age of five. However, the texts on sculpted monuments do not reveal the full complexity of diplomatic activity, as revealed by a painted ceramic vase from Tikal, which depicts an ambassador of Calakmul’s king kneeling before the enthroned king of Tikal and delivering tribute. Just four years later, in August 695, the two states were once again at war. Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’ led his warriors against Jasaw Chan K’awiil I in a catastrophic battle that saw the defeat of Calakmul and the capture of the image of a Calakmul deity named Yajaw Maan. It is unknown what happened to Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’; a stucco sculpture from Tikal shows a captive and the king is mentioned in the accompanying caption but it is not certain if the captive and the king are the same person. This event marked the end of Calakmul’s apogee, with diplomatic activity dropping away and fewer cities recognising Calakmul’s king as overlord. No stelae remain standing in the site core recording Yuknoom Yich’aal K’ak, although there are some in the Northeast Group and 2 broken stelae were buried in Structure 2.

Late Classic: Later kings

The next ruler of Calakmul, Split Earth, is mentioned on a pair of carved bones in the tomb of Tikal king Jasaw Chan K’awiil I. He was ruling by November 695 but it is not known if he was a legitimate member of the Calakmul dynasty or whether he was a pretender placed on the throne by Tikal.

The next known king used a number of name variants, and is referred to by different name segments within and outside of Calakmul. A partial reading of his name is Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil. He erected seven stelae to celebrate a calendrical event in 702 and is named at Dos Pilas in that year, presumably demonstrating that Dos Pilas was still a vassal of Calakmul. El Peru also continued as a vassal and Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil installed a new king there at an unknown date. La Corona received a queen from Yuknoom Took’. Naranjo also remained loyal. Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil commissioned seven more stelae to mark the k’atun-ending of 731. A new defeat at the hands of Tikal is evidenced by a sculpted altar at that city, probably dating to sometime between 733 and 736, depicting a bound lord from Calakmul and possibly names Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil.

Late Classic: Calakmul and Quiriguá

After this the historical record of Calakmul becomes very vague, due both to the poor state of the heavily eroded monuments at the city itself and also its reduced political presence on the wider Maya stage. Wamaw K’awiil is named at Quiriguá on the southern periphery of Mesoamerica. Quiriguá traditionally had been a vassal of its southern neighbour Copán, and in 724 Uaxaclajuun Ub’aah K’awiil, king of Copán, installed K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat upon Quiriguá’s throne as his vassal. By 734 K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat had shown that he was no longer an obedient subordinate of Copán when he started to refer to himself as k’ul ahaw, holy lord, instead of using the lesser term ahaw, subordinate lord; at the same time he began to use his own Quiriguá emblem glyph. This local act of rebellion appears to have been part of the larger political struggle between Tikal and Calakmul. In 736, only two years later, K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat received a visit from Wamaw K’awiil of Calakmul, while Copán was one of Tikal’s oldest allies. The timing of this visit by the king of Calakmul is highly significant, falling between the accession of K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat to the throne of Quiriguá as a vassal of Copán and the outright rebellion that was to follow. This strongly suggests that Calakmul sponsored Quiriguá’s rebellion in order to weaken Tikal and to gain access to the rich trade route of the Motagua Valley. It is likely that contact with Calakmul had been initiated soon after K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat acceded to the throne. In 738 K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat captured the powerful but elderly king of Copán, Uaxaclajuun Ub’aah K’awiil. An inscription at Quiriguá, although difficult to interpret, suggests that the capture took place on 27 April 738, when Quiriguá seized and burned the wooden images of Copán’s patron deities. The captured lord was taken back to Quiriguá and on 3 May 738 he was decapitated in a public ritual.

In the Late Classic, alliance with Calakmul was frequently associated with the promise of military support. The fact that Copán, a much more powerful city than Quiriguá, failed to retaliate against its former vassal implies that it feared the military intervention of Calakmul. Calakmul itself was far enough away from Quiriguá that K’ak’ Tiliw Chan Yopaat was not afraid of falling directly under its power as a full vassal state, even though it is likely that Calakmul sent warriors to help in the defeat of Copán. The alliance instead seems to have been one of mutual advantage: Calakmul managed to weaken a powerful ally of Tikal while Quiriguá gained its independence.

Late Classic: Collapse

Five large stelae were raised in 741, although the name of the king responsible is illegible on all of them and he has been labelled as Ruler Y. Calakmul’s presence in the wider Maya area continued to wane, with two of the city’s major allies suffering defeats at the hands of Tikal. El Peru was defeated in 743 and Naranjo a year later and this resulted in the final collapse of Calakmul’s once powerful alliance network, while Tikal underwent a resurgence in its power.

In 751 Ruler Z erected a stela that was never finished, paired with another with the portrait of a queen. A hieroglyphic stairway mentions someone called B’olon K’awiil at about the same time. B’olon K’awiil was king by 771 when he raised two stelae and he was mentioned at Toniná in 789. Sites to the north of Calakmul showed a reduction in its influence at this time, with new architectural styles influenced by sites further north in the Yucatán Peninsula.

A monument was raised in 790 although the name of the ruler responsible is not preserved. Two more were raised in 800 and three in 810. No monument was erected to commemorate the important Bak’tun-ending of 830 and it is probable that political authority had alreadly collapsed at this time. Important cities such as Oxpemul, Nadzcaan and La Muñeca that were Calakmul’s vassals at one time now erected their own monuments, where before they had raised very few; some continued producing new monuments until as late as 889. This was a process that paralleled events at Tikal. However, there is strong evidence of an elite presence at the city continuing until AD 900, possibly even later.

In 849, Calakmul was mentioned at Seibal where a ruler named as Chan Pet attended the K’atun-ending ceremony; his name may also be recorded on a broken ceramic at Calakmul itself. However, it is unlikely that Calakmul still existed as a state in any meaningful way at this late date. A final flurry of activity took place at the end of the 9th century or the beginning of the 10th. A new stela was erected, although the date records only the day, not the full date. The recorded day may fall either in 899 or 909 with the latter date the most likely. A few monuments appear to be even later although their style is crude, representing the efforts of a remnant population to maintain the Classic Maya tradition. Even the inscriptions on these late monuments are meaningless imitations of writing.

Ceramics dating to the Terminal Classic period are uncommon outside of the site core, suggesting that the population of the city was concentrated in the city centre in the final phase of Calakmul’s occupation. The majority of the surviving population probably consisted of commoners who had occupied the elite architecture of the site core but the continued erection of stelae into the early 10th century and the presence of high status imported goods such as metal, obsidian, jade and shell, indicate a continued occupation by royalty until the final abandonment of the city. The Yucatec-speaking Kejache Maya who lived in the region at the time of Spanish contact in the early 16th century may have been the descendants of the inhabitants of Calakmul.

Calakmul was first reported by Cyrus Lundell in 1931. A year later he informed Sylvanus Morley of the site’s existence and the presence of more than 60 stelae. Morley visited the ruins himself on behalf of the Carnegie Institution of Washington in 1932. In the 1930s surveys mapped the site core and recorded 103 stelae. Investigations stopped in 1938 and archaeologists did not return to the site until 1982 when William J. Folan directed a project on behalf of the Universidad Autónoma de Campeche, working at Calakmul until 1994. Calakmul is now the subject of a large-scale project of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) under the direction of Ramón Carrasco.

The site core of Calakmul covers an area of approximately 2 square kilometres (0.77 sq mi), an area that contains the remains of roughly 1000 structures. The periphery occupied by smaller residential structures beyond the site core covers an area of more than 20 square kilometres (7.7 sq mi) within which archaeologists have mapped approximately 6250 structures. Calakmul matches the great city of Tikal in size and estimated population, although the density of the city appears to have been greater than that city.

The stone used in construction at the site is a soft limestone. This has resulted in severe erosion of the site’s sculpture. The city of Calakmul was built in a strongly concentric fashion and can be divided into zones as one moves outwards from the centre of the site. The innermost zone covers an area of approximately 1.75 square kilometres (0.68 sq mi) It contains most of the monumental architecture and has 975 mapped structures, about 300 of which are built from vaulted stone masonry. About 92 structures were built on large pyramids laid out around plazas and courtyards. The city’s core was bordered on the north side by a 6-metre (20 ft) high wall that controlled access from the north and may also have had a defensive function.

Many commoners residences were built along the edge of El Laberinto swamp to the west of the site core, although some high-status residences and public buildings were interspersed among these. The area between the residences was used for horticulture.

Water control

The site is surrounded by an extensive network of canals and reservoirs. There are five major reservoirs, including the largest example in the Maya world, measuring 242 by 212 metres (794 by 696 ft). This reservoir is filled by a small seasonal river during the rainy season and continues to hold enough water for it to be used by archaeologists in modern times.

Thirteen reservoirs have been identified at Calakmul. The combined capacity of all the reservoirs is estimated at over 200,000,000 litres (44,000,000 imp gal). This quantity of water could have supported 50,000 to 100,000 people; there is no evidence that the reservoirs were used to irrigate crops.

Aguada 1 is the largest of the reservoirs and has a surface area of 5 hectares (540,000 sq ft).

Causeways

Eight sacbe (causeways) have been located around Calakmul. Two of these have been mapped, three have been identified visually on the ground and three more identified with remote sensing. They have been numbered as Sacbe 1 through to Sacbe 7. The causeway network not only linked Calakmul with local satellite sites but also with more distant allies and rivals, such as the great cities of El Mirador, El Tintal and Nakbe. Those causeways that cross swampy land are elevated above the surrounding wetland and they now tend to support denser vegetation than the surrounding forest.

Sacbe 1 is 450 metres (1,480 ft) long and is lined and filled with stone. It is located within the mapped urban area of the site core. Sacbe 1 was first mapped in the 1930s by the Carnegie Institution of Washington.

Sacbe 2 is 70 metres (230 ft) long. It has been mapped within the urban area of the site core. Sacbe 2 is built of packed earth and was discovered during the archaeological excavation of a nearby quarry. This causeway may have been built to transport stone from the quarry in order to build Structures 1 and 3.

Sacbe 3 extends 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) northeast from the site core and is visible from the summit of Structure 1. It was first discovered in 1982.

Sacbe 4 runs 24 kilometres (15 mi) southeast from the site core, it is also visible from the summit of Structure 1 and was discovered in 1982.

Sacbe 5 runs westwards from the main watering hole, across El Laberinto seasonal swamp and carries on for a total distance of 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) or more towards Sasilhá.

Sacbe 6 runs southwest across El Laberinto bajo and links Calakmul with El Mirador (38.25 kilometres (23.77 mi) to the southwest) and, beyond it, El Tintal (an additional 30 kilometres (19 mi).

Sacbe 7 is located south of Sacbe 6. It is at least 5.1 kilometres (3.2 mi) long and runs across El Laberinto swamp.

Sacbe 8 is on the west side of the swamp and does not appear to cross it to the site core.

There are 6,750 ancient structures identified at Calakmul; the largest of which is the great pyramid at the site.

Structure 2 is over 45 metres (148 ft) high, making it one of the tallest of the Maya pyramids.

Four tombs have been located within the pyramid. Like many temples or pyramids within Mesoamerica the pyramid at Calakmul increased in size by building upon the existing temple to reach its current size.

The size of the central monumental architecture is approximately 2 square kilometres (0.77 sq mi) and the whole of the site, mostly covered with dense residential structures, is about 20 square kilometres (7.7 sq mi).

Structure 1 (or Structure I) is a 50-metre-high (160 ft) pyramid to the east of the site core. A number of stelae were erected at its base by Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil in 731. Because it was built on a low hill, Structure 1 appears to be higher than Structure 2, although this is not the case.

Structure 2 (or Structure II) is a massive north-facing pyramid temple, one of the largest in the Maya world. Its base measures 120 metres (390 ft) square and it stands over 45 metres (148 ft) high. In common with many temple pyramids in the Mesoamerican cultural region, the pyramid at Calakmul increased in size by building upon the pre-existing temple in order to increase its bulk. The core of the building (Structure 2A) is a triadic pyramid dating to the Late Preclassic period, with this ancient building still forming the highest point of the structure. In the Early Classic a massive extension was added to the front of the pyramid, covering an earlier stucco-covered building on the north side. Three new shrines were built upon this extension (Structures 2B, 2C and 2D), each of these shrines had its own access stairway. Structure 2B was the central shrine, 2C was to the east and 2D to the west. The facade possessed six large masks set between these stairways, three arranged vertically on each side of the central stairway. Structure 2 is similar in date, size and design to the El Tigre pyramid at El Mirador, and associated ceramics are also similar. At a later time buildings were erected along the base of the facade, each of these contained stelae. In the 8th century AD, Structure 2B was entombed under a large pyramid and a stepped facade covered the giant masks. Later another facade was built over this 8th century stepped frontage but it may never have been finished. In the Late Classic a nine-room palace was built on top of the pyramid, supporting a roof comb that had painted stucco bas-relief decoration. The rooms were arranged in three groups of three, each room positioned behind the next. The entire Late Classic palace measured 19.4 by 12 metres (64 by 39 ft). The front two rows of rooms (Rooms 1 through to 6) were used for food preparation, metates and hearths were found in each of them. Room 7, the southwest room, was a sweatbath.

Structure 3 (or Structure III, also known as the Lundell Palace) is southeast of Structure 4, on the east side of the Central Plaza. It is a building with multiple rooms.

Structure 4 (or Structure IV) is a group of three temples on the east side of the Central Plaza. It is divided into three sections, labelled Structures 4a, 4b and 4c. The central Structure 4b is built upon a substructure dating to the Preclassic period. Together with Structure 6 on the opposite side of the plaza, these buildings form an E-Group that may have been used to determine the solstices and the equinoxes.

Structure 5 (or Structure V) is a large building located on the plaza to the north of Structure 2. It was surrounded by 10 stelae, many dated to the 7th century AD although the building itself was first erected in the Preclassic period.

Structure 6 (or Structure VI) is on the west side of the Central Plaza and, together with Structures 4a, 4b and 4c, forms an E-Group astronomical complex. In 1989 observations verified that on March 21, the vernal equinox, the sun rose behind Structure 4b as seen from Structure 6.

Structure 7 (or Structure VII) is a temple pyramid on the north side of the Central Plaza. It faces south and stands 24 metres (79 ft) high. Five plain stelae were erected on the south side of the pyramid. It underwent several construction phases from in the Late to Terminal Classic. The pyramid was topped by a three-room temple that possessed a tall stucco-covered roof comb. A patolli game board was carved into the floor of the outermost room of the temple.

Structure 8 (or Structure VIII) is a small building located on the north side of the Central Plaza, to the east of Structure 7. It is associated with Stela 1 and its altar.

Stelae, murals and ceramics

Calakmul is one of the most structure-rich sites within the Maya region. The site contains 117 stelae, the largest total in the region. Most are in paired sets representing rulers and their wives. However, because these carved stelae were produced in soft limestone, most of these stelae have been eroded beyond interpretation. Also many elaborate murals were discovered at Calakmul. These murals do not represent activities of the elite class. Rather, they depict elaborate market scenes of people preparing or consuming products such as atole, tamales, or tobacco as an ointment. Also items being sold were textiles and needles. These murals also have glyphs within them describing the actions occurring. The most prominent figure in these murals is identified as Lady Nine Stone; she appears in many scenes. This brings a world of the Maya marketplace to vibrant life for archaeologists. Another highly beneficial resource to Maya archaeological understanding at Calakmul is the ceramic remains. The composition of the ceramic materials identifies the region or more specifically the polity that produced them. Ceramics with the snake emblem glyph found at several sites also give more evidence to identify ties or control over that site by Calakmul.

Stela 1 is associated with an altar and located by Structure 8.

Stela 8 records the celebration of an event in AD 593 by Uneh Chan and was erected after his death.

Stela 9 is a thin slate monument dated to 662. Its text describes the birth of king Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’ and gives him his full royal title.

Stela 28 and Stela 29 were erected in 623 and are the earliest monuments to survive from Late Classic Calakmul. They depict a royal couple but the texts are too poorly preserved to reveal their names.

Stela 33 was erected by Yuknoom Che’en II in 657 and records an event in the reign of Uneh Chan, who may have been his father. The event was celebrated in 593.

Stela 38 stands at the base of Structure 2.

Stela 42 is also located at the base of Structure 2.

Stela 43 dates to AD 514. It was set in a vaulted chamber near the base of Structure 2. The text is damaged but carries an early spelling of the k’uhul chatan winik non-royal noble title used in Calakmul and the Mirador Basin.

Stela 50 is one of the last monuments erected during the final decline of the city. It bears a crude, clumsily executed portrait.

Stela 51 is the best preserved monument at Calakmul. It depicts Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil and dates to AD 731.

Stela 54 dates to 731 and depicts a wife of Yuknoom Took’ K’awiil.

Stela 57 is a tall stela erected in 771 by B’olon K’awiil. It is paired with Stela 58 and stands to the east of Structure 13.

Stela 58 is the second of a pair erected by B’olon K’awiil in 771, the other being Stela 57. It was erected to the east of Structure 13.

Stela 61 is a late monument bearing the name Aj Took’. It is a stunted stela with a badly eroded portrait and a shortened date form that is equivalent to a date either in 899 or 909, probably the latter.

Stela 62 was unfinished. It was carved to mark the K’atun-ending ceremony of 751 and bears the damaged name of Ruler Z.

Stela 76 and Stela 78 are a pair of monuments dated to AD 633. They are badly eroded but should date to the reign of king Yuknoom Head.

Stela 84 is one of the last monuments erected at Calakmul and bears an inscription that is an illiterate imitation of writing. It probably dates to the early 10th century AD.

Stela 88 may have been paired with Stela 62. The monument has the image of a queen but her name is unknown. B’olon K’awiil also appears to be mentioned on the stela. It dates to around 751 and stands on the stairway of Structure 13. Stela 91 is another very late monument probably dating to the early 10th century. Like Stela 84, it bears an inscription that is a meaningless imitation of hieroglyphic writing.

Stela 114 dates to AD 435, in the Early Classic. It was moved in antiquity to be reset into the base of Structure 2. The stela has a long hieroglyphic text that has resisted translation but probably commemorates a royal enthronement in 411.

Stela 115 and Stela 116 date to the reign of Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’. They were broken and buried in Structure 2 and may be associated with the royal burial in Tomb 4.

Royal burial

Tomb 4 was set into the floor of Structure 2B in the 8th century AD and is the richest burial known from Calakmul. The tomb contained a male skeleton wrapped in textiles and jaguar pelts that were partially preserved with resin. The tomb contained rich offerings that included jade ear ornaments handed down from the Early Classic, a jade mosaic mask, shell and bone beads, spiny oyster shells, eccentric obsidian blades, fine ceramics and the remains of wooden objects. One of the ceramics was a plate with a hieroglyphic text that specifically named king Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’ as its owner. The remains and the offering were placed in an arched wooden bier carved with elaborate decoration and hieroglyphs that was painted in a variety of colours. The bier has almost completely decayed but left an impression in the mud packed around it. Due to the plate and the possible association of Stelae 115 and 116 with the burial the tomb is believed to be that of the late 7th-century king Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak’.

…

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The city is situated on the western side of Chetumal Bay, near the mouth of the Río Hondo.

Because of its location on the Caribbean coastline, it is vulnerable to tropical cyclones; Hurricane Janet and Hurricane Dean, both Category 5 storms, made landfall near Chetumal in 1955 and 2007 respectively.

Chetumal, in modern Maya: Chactemàal, means “Place of the Red Wood”.

In Pre-Columbian times, a city called Chactemal (sometimes rendered as “Chetumal” in early European sources), probably today’s Santa Rita in Belize, was the capital of a Maya state of the same name that roughly controlled the southern quarter of modern Quintana Roo and the northeast portion of Belize. This original Chetumal is now believed to have been on the other side of the Río Hondo, in modern Belize, not at the site of modern Chetumal.

During the Spanish conquest of Yucatán, the Maya state of Chetumal fought off several Spanish expeditions before finally being subjugated in the late 16th century.

The 1840s revolt of the indigenous Maya peoples against Mexican rule, known as the Caste War of Yucatán, drove all the Hispanic people from this region; many settled in British Honduras (modern Belize).

The current site of Chetumal was established as a Mexican port town in 1898, originally under the name Payo Obispo. The name was officially changed to Chetumal in 1936.

Two hurricanes in the 1940s leveled the entire town; Chetumal was devastated a third time in 1955 by Hurricane Janet. After this, the town was rebuilt with more solid construction, with concrete blocks replacing wood as the usual material.

The population of Chetumal was small (about 5,000 in 1950) until the construction of highways linking it to the rest of Mexico in the 1960s and 1970s; the city then boomed with substantial migration from other parts of Mexico.

The city has a Museum of Maya Culture as well as a zoo, the Payo Obispo Zoo, which belongs to the children of Quintana Roo.

Chetumal’s economy has been influenced by its proximity to the border with Belize. A goods and services tax-free zone (Corozal Free Zone) established on the Belizean side attracts many visitors to Chetumal and also provides a ready market for Chetumal’s retailers and traders.

A large indoor mall, the Plaza de las Américas, houses a modern movie theater (which belongs to the Mexican chain Cinepolis), various department store chains, fast-food outlets, and a Chedraui supermarket.

The city has a music school which offers lessons of various instruments as well as music theory and history. The school is the main music school of the state and is the home of the Junior symphonic orchestra of the state Quintana Roo (“Orquesta sinfonica juvenil del estado de Quintana Roo”) which is directed by Silvia Alcantara Chavero.

The city houses two theaters. The “Teatro Minerva”, which is an open-air theater and belongs to the state’s music school, and the “Teatro Constituyentes”, which is a private-owned theater.

There is a Country club, which features tennis, football and basketball courts, a gym, a swimming pool, a steam-bath and a lounge for parties.

In the early 1990s, the University of Quintana Roo was established at Chetumal, providing training and advanced tertiary degrees over a range of subjects.

Monuments

Monument to the Flag (Monumento a la Bandera), the first monument built in Chetumal. It consists of a white obelisk that has a clock dial on each of its faces.
Cradles of the Meztizaje (Monumento Cuna del Meztizaje), constructed in the entrance of Chetumal. It has the form of a Mayan pyramid on which are the statues of Gonzalo Guerrero, his wife Zazil Há and the children of both.
Andrés Quintana Roo Memorial, dedicated to Andrés Quintana Roo, whom the state was named after.
Monument to the Fishermen, one of the most recent, located in the Bay of Chetumal.

• Cultural Center of the Fine Arts (Centro Cultural de las Bellas Artes), located in the center of the city. The building is housed in what was the school Belisario Domínguez, which was the first school of Quintana Roo.
• Museum of the Mayan Culture (Museo de la Cultura Maya), considered the largest and most comprehensive museum in the state dedicated to the Mayan culture. It has an important collection of authentic and reproductions of classical works, and tells the development of Mayan culture, its origins, as well as various aspects of their daily life.
• Museum of the City. Tied to the Cultural Center of the Fine Arts, dedicated to the exhibition of photographs, tools and documents that tell the story of the founding of the city.

• Ecological Park (Parque Ecológico)
• Cheese Park
• Biouniverzoo Zoo

Chetumal is a perfect city to stay there for a while exploring the surrounding areas in daily tours on your own or guided ones.

Suggested 1 day tours from Chetumal

• Chacchoben
• Kinichna + Dzibanche
• Kohunlich
• Bacalar
• Xpuhil, Hormiguero, Rio Bec, Chicanna, Balamku
• Calakmul

For more information about all these suggested places to visit and how to get there, use the search form on our website or related tags.

You can dial 078 from any phone, where you can find free information about tourist attractions, airports, travel agencies, car rental companies, embassies and consulates, fairs and exhibitions, hotels, hospitals, financial services, migratory and other issues.

Or dial the toll-free (in Mexico) number 01-800-006-8839.

You can also request information to the email correspondencia@sectur.gob.mx

MORE EMERGENCY NUMBERS:

General Information: 040 (not free)

SNational Emergency Service: 911

Radio Patrols: 066
Police (Emergency): 060
Civil Protection: +52(55)5683-2222
Anonymous Complaint: 089

Setravi (Transport Mobility): +52(55)5209-9913
Road Emergency: 074

Cruz Roja: 065 o +52(55)5557-5757
Firefighters: 068 o +52(55)5768-3700