Caracol (snail) is located on the western edge of the Maya Mountains within the Chiquibul Forest Reserve and sits on a high plateau, 500m above sea level. The site, they say, was discovered in 1938 by Rosa Mai, a logger looking for firewood and has since been investigated by a line of prestigious archaeologists.

 

It is believed that Caracol was first occupied between the Middle and Late Classic Periods (600-300 BC) and that its period of greatest prominence was during the Late Classic period (A.D 550-900) when it probably covered over 100 sq kilometers with a population of around 60-100 thousand people.

 

Archaeological research at Caracol has established that this large Maya city was a key player in the socio-political landscape of the central Maya lowlands. Within the epicenter there were many temples, palaces, bustling markets, busy throughfares and craft workshops.

 

Structures of note include a group of structures known as E-Group which is known to have served as astronomical observatories for recording the equinoxes and solstices. Stucture A6 is one of the oldest and longest structures at Caracol spanning several construction phases from 300BC to AD 1100. The Central Acropolis was an elite residential group which in its final Late Classic form contained two shrines, a funeral building and palaces. A royal tomb at the base of one of the structures contained the remains of four individuals and 20 pottery vessels. Structure B19 housed the largest and most elaborate tomb known from Caracol and contained the remains of a woman, found in a way that suggests she was buried in an upright position, or in abundle. The remains may be of Lady Batz'Ek who apparently originated from neighbouring Calakmul (in modern day Mexico).