cathedral in Tegucigalpa
Visitors to Honduras will find many historical sites around the country and archaeology can be studied at the Copan Ruins archaeological site. This is the most studied Mayan city in the world and dates back nearly 2,000 years. The society that lived there were very stratified, deeply symbolic and traditional in how they lived. The site consists of the Stelae of the GreatPlaza c.613, the ball court, the hieroglyphic stairway, and the Acropolis with superb carved reliefs of the sixteen Kings of Copan.The Acropolis is divided in two big plazas, west and east courts. In the west court is TempleII which was meant to be a portal to the supernatural world, and in the east court is pyramid 16, known today as the Temple of the Sun, a temple of the god of war, death and sacrifice.
There are several areas of interest in these ruins such as the ball court, a place where gladiator style ball games were played. Unique are the markers on the side walls, macaw heads. It is the second biggest in Central America. The hieroglyphic stairway is a unique temple which holds the longest known Mayan text. The intricate carvings on the 63 steps represent five successors to the dynasty. The Plaza of the Stelae is another area of the site that will fascinate tourists. This area is famous for the stelae and altars erected during the years 711 and 736. Then there are the tunnels, with excavations having revealed over 4km of tunnels under the site. The ones that are open are the Rosa Lila Tunnel, built 571, and the 700m long Los Jaguars Tunnel.
The Copan Museum of Sculpture is a massive complex that has been open since 1999 and houses several key stelae and altars found at the site, including the impressive main altar carved with all the sixteen Kings of Copan. The museum has a dramatic entrance through a tunnel which you enter through the mouth of a serpent. The tunnel opens into an open courtyard with a full sized replica of the Rosa Lila Temple. The sculptures are in a beautiful open air setting. Two floors of wide corridors open to the middle for a better view of the Rosa Lila. On the walls a visitor can see examples of Copan stonework with organised displays explaining the icons, imagery and hieroglyphics found there.
the Stelae of the Great Plaza honduras
The Acropolis in honduras
The hieroglyphic stairway
the Rosa Lila Tunnel
the sixteen Kings of Copan
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