Long, long ago, Tikal was one of the chief cities of the enormous and glorious civilizations of Maya of America that extended across the present day southern Mexico, Belize and Guatemala. The Mayas reached remarkable intellectual and creative heights during the Classic period of their great civilization, between around AD 250 and 900.
Mayas built huge Mayan temples and pyramids, inscribed stone monuments, advanced strikingly in mathematics and astronomy, and developed complex hieroglyphic scripts but their civilization crumpled mysteriously leaving the grand temples and pyramids abandoned. |
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Now the ruins of Maya are concealed by the deep rainforests of Guatemala. One can have only few glimpses of the peaks and weather-battered facades of the Mayan Temples through the dense canopy.
The Mayan temples that were situated atop the tall pyramids were in the ceremonial heart of the city. The Temple of the Great Jaguar - sits on a towering pyramid built over the tomb of King Hasaw Chan K'awil. Maya aristocracy and priests used the temples for ceremonies and religious rites, with the general public watching from the Great Plaza below.
Wonders of the world have always been a topic of interest for all, few of the forgotten wonders are below for browsing.
On top of a tall pyramid at Palenque in the lush forests of the Mexican Chiapas highlands is the Temple of the Inscriptions that holds hieroglyphic plates recounting the history of Pakal's ancestors. In the 1950s, the secret of the temple was discovered when a hidden stairway was uncovered below the floor. The winding tunnel led to a crypt through the interior of the pyramid. The tomb of Pakal and jade treasures were discovered underneath when a huge stone slab covered in relief carvings was moved.
| The impressive Temple of Kukulkan, or El Castillo, at Chichen Itza was dedicated to the cult of the feathered snake deity called Quetzalcoat! The temple was positioned in such a way that astonishingly a shadow and sunshine formed the illusion of a serpent creeping down the steps at each equinox. Human sacrifice was an integral part of the rituals at Chichen Itza.
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All these temples and their upper roof combs were originally adorned with painted reliefs.
Allwondersoftheworld.com gives us a glimpse of the Mayan architecture of the ancient Mayan Temples. The present day dampened, moss and lichen covered temple premises and gigantic reservoirs are mere shadows of their glorified pasts.
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