Uxmal - Mexico

The zone was first settled in 500AD and Uxmal was founded c. A.D. 700.

It's 62 kilometers south of Merida, in the Santa Elena valley, forming the centre of the Puuc ("hill" or "chain of low mountains") region.

 This is the house or "Pyramid of the Magician" ...aka "Pyramid of the Soothsayer"

In the 9th and 12th centuries AD it became the seat of Mayan political and economic power.

, Uxmal is not laid out geometrically. Its space is organized in relation to astronomical phenomena, such as the rising and setting of Venus.

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The house of the magician rises 90.5 feet (27.6 metres) in three concentric sections.  The temple at the top section has a doorway in the form of a Chac mask. It is also known as the House of the Dwarf (“Casa del Enano”) because of an ancient legend stating that it was built overnight by an enchanted dwarf who then became the city’s ruler.

 

Uxmal is a dry grass savanna area. Water was provided by cenotes (wells formed by sinkholes in 

limestone understrata).

 tHE Ballcourt - Pelota

 Constructed during the 9th and early 10th century.
Notice the "rings"

Pelota was a prestigious ceremonial activity and was associated with rulers and at the same time the humiliation of captives. The game was played with a solid rubber ball, whose diameter varied between 20cm and 35cm. The ball could only be touched with the hips, elbows and knees. Players wore leather protective clothing.

 The Cemetry Complex

 iTS not a real cemetery. The name comes from the relief's of skulls and crossed bones.

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