Images

Probable location of the ball court in Grand Plaza of Maya city of Chacchoben, c. 700 CE. The Mesoamerican ball game of Poc-a-toc had religious significance and was considered so important that those who died playing it went instantly to...

Weathered and broken stele in the Grand Plaza of the Maya city of Chacchoben, Mexico, c. 700 CE. It rests at the foot of the stairs leading up to the Gran Basamento plateau where religious rituals were held.

The steep climb of El Castillo, Chichen Itza, c. 750-1200 CE. Image taken before climbing the pyramid was forbidden.

The ruins of the ancient market place and residential area in the Great Plaza of the Maya site of Chacchoben, c. 700 CE.

Temple 24 at the Maya site of Chacchoben, c. 700 CE. The first temple one encounters upon entering the grounds. The extant structure was built upon a much older temple which had been built over an even older one. This was in keeping with...

The Temple of the Ways (Las Vias) at Maya site of Chacchoben, c. 700 CE. In Maya belief, the Ways ("Wayobs") were protective spirits who guided an individual through life. Wayobs were thought to appear in dreams to deliver messages from the...

Stairs ascending from the Great Plaza (the market and residential area) to the Gran Basamento ("Great Basement") of the Maya site of Chacchoben, c. 700 CE. The Gran Basamento was a sacred plateau where religious rituals were enacted, including...

The stairs of the Gran Basamento ("Great Basement") at Maya site of Chacchoben c. 700 CE. These stairs lead up from the Great Plaza, the market place/residential area, to the plateau of the Great Basement where the Temple of the Vessels (Las...

Structure known as Temple 1 at Maya site of Chacchoben c. 700 CE. The temple is astronomically aligned to focus the first rays of dawn on the summer solstice down onto an area where once a statue or stele would have stood.

Temple of Las Vasijas ("the vessels") at Maya site of Chacchoben c. 700 CE.