| Tikal - The Mayan Metropolis |
| Central Pyramids |
| Guatemala |
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| As the model shows, Tikal was the Maya Manhattan, larger, richer, and more powerful than any other Maya city-state. Tikal had more pyramids than its rivals, and the tallest pyramid. All this in the middle of the jungle. We start with the two pyramids facing each other at the front left of the model. |
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| The Temple of the Grand Jaguar is the burial site of the Mayan king with my favorite name, Lord Chocolate. He ruled at the beginning of the 8th century, and is credited with both building this temple and greatly increasing Tikal's military strength. Under repair, the temple was unfortunately closed to climbers. |
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| This jade mask, uncovered at Tikal, may have been worn by Lord Chocolate. |
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| Directly across the Great Plaza from Lord Chocolate's Temple is the Temple of the Masks, presented here in wide angle. My best vertical photo, featuring the stairs, can be seen by clicking Here. This was the first Mayan pyramid I had the opportunity to climb! |
| Going up can be tough on kids, but my own ascent was quite easy. |
| From the summit of the Temple of the Masks here is Tikal's Great Plaza. At the top of this picture is the base of the Temple of the Grand Jaguar. The pair of facing pyramids remains a Tikal trademark. To the left, Tikal's Central Acropolis is a ruin. Then I learned that going down the stairs of a Mayan pyramid required far more caution than climbing up. |
| If you have a high speed internet connection, watch the Intrepid Berkeley Explorer's free video of this trip to Central America and Mexico, "Mayavision", by clicking on AdventurePics.com . |
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