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![Copan](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/1430.jpg?v=1731252725)
Definition
Copan
Copán (in modern Honduras) is located on the floodplain of the river of the same name. It was the most southerly of the Classic Maya centres and, at an altitude of 600 metres, the highest. Copán reached the height of its power in the 8th...
![K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/2446.jpg?v=1738643764)
Definition
K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo
Yax K'uk' Mo' (pronounced `Yash Kook Mo') was the founder and first king of the dynasty that ruled the Maya city of Copan (in modern day Honduras) for 350 years. Known formally by his royal name, K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo', he reigned for eleven...
![Copan Site Plan](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/3513.jpg?v=1707255664)
Image
Copan Site Plan
A reconstructed site plan of the Classic Maya centre of Copán in modern Honduras.
![Copan glyph](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/3541.png?v=1712582524)
Image
Copan glyph
This ancient Maya glyph represents the city of Copan (also spelled Kopan).
![Stela D at Copan by Catherwood](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/760.jpg?v=1611903622)
Image
Stela D at Copan by Catherwood
This lithograph of Stela D at Copan was done by Frederick Catherwood and first published in 1844 in his book, Views of Ancient Monuments in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatan. Like John Lloyd Stephens' works on the Maya, the book was very...
![Ball Court, Copan](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/1430.jpg?v=1731252725)
Image
Ball Court, Copan
The ball court of the Mayan city of Copan. The game was popular across Mesoamerica and the objective was to put a rubber ball through a hoop placed on the side walls.
![Rosalila Temple, Copan](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/4066.jpg?v=1599373803)
Image
Rosalila Temple, Copan
A reconstruction of the Maya temple known as the Rosalila, excavated from within Structure 16 at Copan. c. 8th century CE.
![Maya Site of Copan (UNESCO/NHK)](/uploads/kraked/6/6-885_ci_preview.jpg?v=1538481320-1739206758)
Video
Maya Site of Copan (UNESCO/NHK)
Discovered in 1570 by Diego García de Palacio, the ruins of Copán, one of the most important sites of the Mayan civilization, were not excavated until the 19th century. The ruined citadel and imposing public squares reveal the three main...
![Early Explorers of the Maya Civilization: John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/759.jpg?v=1699638123)
Article
Early Explorers of the Maya Civilization: John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood
The names of John Lloyd Stephens and Frederick Catherwood are forever linked to the Maya and Mayan studies as the two great explorers who documented the ruins from Copan in the south to Chichen Itza in the north. The stories told by Stephens...
![Maya Architecture](https://www.worldhistory.org/img/c/p/360x202/3102.jpg?v=1730401326)
Definition
Maya Architecture
Maya architecture is best characterized by the soaring pyramid temples and ornate palaces which were built in all Maya centres across Mesoamerica from El Tajin in the north to Copan in the south. The Maya civilization was formed of independent...