Points of Interest in Uxmal

The most impressive structure and the tallest at 100 feet, is the House of the Magician which you will find just beyond the entrance. According to ancient legend, this pyramid was built by Itzamna in one night. It actually appears to have been built in five phases, and it was situated so that its western stairway faces the setting sun at summer solstice. Note as of October 2009, tourists are no longer permitted to climb the House of the Magician.

The Nunnery, another large building on the site, was named by the Spaniards as it reminded them of a European nunnery. It was probably used as a school for training healers, astrologers, shamans and priests.

The Governor's Palace is an excellent example of stone mosaic work probably created by hundreds of masons and sculptors. It occupies five acres and contains many beautiful sculptures of the rain god Chaac, serpents and astrological symbols.

Other buildings at Uxmal include the House of Turtles, decorated with turtle sculptures associated at that time with rain, the Dovecote, a building with many separate chambers, the House of the Old Woman, and more. Uxmal also has a large ballcourt, enclosing a playing field that is 110 feet long and 32 feet wide.

Uxmal Archaeological Site

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