Uxmal, the largest religious and government center on the Puuc Route, was also a huge Maya city that rivaled its contemporaries Palenque in Chiapas and Tikal in Guatemala.
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Uxmal's buildings are known for their clean horizontal lines and abundant ornamentation on the upper portion of the facades contrasting with the simplicity of the lower stone walls. They are mostly built on artificial platforms laid out in quadrangles. To compensate for the lack of surface water sources, rain was collected in huge cisterns called chultunes.
Contrary to the traditional angular pyramid, Uxmal's
Magicians Pyramid is oval in shape. Although legend has it that a dwarf built it in a single night, it was actually rebuilt five times, with each successive structure superimposed on the previous one. The main staircase leads to a temple on top, the entrance to which is through the open mouth of a giant Chaak mask.
Behind the Magician's Pyramid is the
Nun's Quadrangle, named by the Spanish conquistadors for its resemblance to a convent. Seemingly this was the palace of one of Uxmal's prominent kings,
Chaak Chak, who according to the inscriptions found there, also inaugurated the Ball Court in AD 901. The Quadrangle's four buildings are composed of rooms opening o to a central patio.
To the south is the
House of Turtles, decorated with stylized tortoises and El Palomar (or The Dovecote), crowned with a honeycomb battlement that is unique to the region.
Also, the
Great Pyramid, with a small terrace 82 feet of the ground that offers a splendid view of the city.
The
Governor's Palace, built on a platform rising 33 feet from the jungle floor. This elegant, highly symmetrical building is divided into three separate sections by dome roofed passageways. Its orientation toward the east has led scholars to speculate that it was used to observe the planet Venus.
