Palenque from Lost Cities of The World

This ancient city is situated at the foot of Tumbalá mountains in state of Chiapas in Mexico. This Mayan site was set up between the 3rd and the 5th century AD. Its greatest value lies in the innovative Mayan architecture. Its main monuments are very elegant and skillfully built, and were constructed between 500 and 700 AD. They are marked by the Maya mythological themes, and characterized by mansard roofs and fine bas-reliefs. One of its significant architectural expressions is artificial terracing, which marked this area with uniqueness and structural harmony. The central building is a the Palacio, a truncated pyramid – a kind of an observatory, built at the peak of power of the city (between 500- 700 AD). The second important monument is the Temple of Inscriptions, built as a crypt for mortal remains. Away from the central part, and partly covered with vegetation, there are other temple-pyramids: the Temple of the Sun, the Temple of the Cross, the Temple of Foliated Cross, and the he Temple of the Count (named after the archeologist Baron Jean-Frédéric Waldeck who lived there in the 19th century). Today, archaeologists are trying to find out even more about this place, and excavations are still ongoing.