Architecture

World-famous

The Maya culture is famous for its architecture. The buildings left behind by the Maya inspire onlookers with a sense of awe and admiration. Famous Maya sites are for example Palenque, Uxmal, Mayapán, Copán, Tikal, Uaxactún and Chichén Itzá. These places are large religious ceremonial centres.

Pyramidal Mounds

The ceremonial centres usually consisted of  pyramidal mounds with temples or other buildings on top.  These structures were grouped together around an open plaza. The Maya used the technique of superimposition, where a new building is constructed on top of an older one.Limestone structures, faced with lime stucco, were the hallmark of ancient Maya architecture.

Material & Techniques

Carved wood was used for door lintels and sculptures. The Maya developed several unique building innovations, including the corbel arch which was a false arch achieved by stepping each successive block, from opposite sides, closer to the center, and capped at the peak. This construction required very heavy walls and narrow interior spaces. Windows, if present at all, were very small. Both the interior and exterior walls were colorfully painted. Especially the exterior facades were amply ornamented with  painted sculptures, carved door lintels, stucco and stone tessallation. Those ornamentations were usually arranged in broard friezes, which alternated with bands of common stonework.

High efforts

Without metal tools, draft animals, or even the wheel the Mayans were able to construct vast cities across a huge jungle landscape with an amazing degree of architectural perfection and variety. The homes of the common people probably resembled the thatched clay huts, the descendants of the Mayas still live in today