Xunantunich Mayan Ruins

In 2016 they discovered a tomb of a Maya ruler underneath the main temple, in Xunantunich, one of the biggest tombs ever discovered in Belize.
Xunantunich Mayan Ruins - The name of this ancient Mayan ruin is a tongue twister, but to indigenous peoples who made this sacred site their home for millennia, Xunantunich was a safe, secure hilltop area with plenty of vantage points, just in case a neighboring army of usurpers or explorers from abroad sought to claim this stronghold. Though this site was settled–according to social scientists–around the 1st Century BC, builders didn’t develop the area until the 7th Century AD. The mystery surrounding the collapse of this Mayan population around 850 AD hasn’t been solved, but not a soul was left here by 1000 AD.
Though the excavated portion of Xunantunich occupies about 300 square meters of land, there is more to be unearthed. What remains behind tells of a quintessential Classic Period ceremonial center, but what separates this from other ruins is the domination of El Castillo, the tallest structure (sometimes called a pyramid) in Belize. It’s thought that this huge structure was the last ruling family’s ancestral shrine. The compound is divided into plazas for easy identification, but if you need more guidance to interpret features, find detailed information about the ruin at the visitor’s center.
Why should you visit Xunantunich Maya Ruins? 
First, the aerial view from the top of the 130-foot-high El Castillo is worth the climb. From that vantage point, you’ll see an orderly layout surrounded by lush jungle and rainforest. Next, since many archaeological attractions in Belize can be hard to reach, Xunantunich is the exception. You won’t be required to forge rivers, squeeze into caves or bat bugs as you walk through jungle, and you don’t have to be a student of Mayan history to appreciate the plaza, stucco friezes, ceremonial masks and enigmatic designs scrawled along the bases of buildings in this fascinating compound.
What is the Best Way to Experience Xunantunich?
For national monuments (such as Xunantunich), the Belize Government requires that you be accompanied by a licensed-trained tour guide.  This is not only for your safety, but the governments way of protecting their historical monuments.  
Best Way to Experience Xunantunich
Plan to spend the day here so you’ve plenty of time to see everything, take photos and learn more about the site’s two building spurts (the first, about 800 AD and the second around 900 AD). The frieze travel writers talk most about is on the east end of the building where you’ll also find Chaac, the rain god. If you want to impress fellow travelers, share this tidbit: When the first buildings were constructed, El Castillo occupied the center of the village, but when the second construction wave doubled the site’s size, El Castillo wound up on the southern edge.
What is the Best Way to Reach Xunantunich?
You’ll probably get a kick out of the free, hand-cranked ferry that leaves the village of San Jose Succotz, traverses the Mopan River and delivers you to the opposite bank where you’ll travel by foot or by vehicle about a mile (uphill) to the attraction’s ticket office on the Western Highway. You must request the ferry because there is no set schedule, though operating hours run from 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., so unless you intend to swim, don’t forget to book it.
When is the Best Time to Go?
Because this easy-to-reach Mayan historic site is located on elevated land that can escape flooding when seasonal rains fall, Xunantunich is usually accessible 24/7. That said, if rivers rise as a result of a particularly wet green season, boarding the ferry to make the shore-to-shore river journey could be problematic, so if this site is atop your “must-see” list, visit Belize before June and after August.
Where is Xunantunich located?
If you’ve a map of Belize, you will notice that this ancient Maya village is situated in western Belize, about 80 miles west of Belize City in the nation’s Cayo District. Specifically, it’s 6.5 miles west of San Ignacio on the Western Highway. It’s so close to Guatemala—less than a mile, in fact—that you may be able to spot it sitting atop a hill overlooking the Mopan River on your way to or from the neighboring nation.

Xunantunich Mayan Ruins

     Your journey takes you to the Belize mainland where you will visit the Xuantunich Mayan Ruins.   This tour is typically coupled with another half day tour, making this mainland activity a full-day tour.
     Take the Western highway for approximately 70 miles, until you reach Santa Elena town. Take the road that leads to Succotz village which is just before reaching Benque Viejo del Carmen. At this point you should see a ferry on the right hand side of the road and a sign for the Maya temple. You cross the ferry free of charge and Xunantunich is a three minute drive from there. Check out our full article devoted to  Xunantunich Mayan Ruins.
     Xunantunich means “maiden of the rock” or “stone woman” in Maya, and is situated on the Western Highway across the river from the village of San Jose Succotz. It can be reached by ferry daily between 8 am and 5 pm.
     This site is less than one mile from some lovely rapids of the Mopan River and provides an impressive view of the entire river valley. Xunantunich is a Classic Period ceremonial center. The site core occupies only 300 square meters but the periphery covers several square kilometers On the main palace building is an astronomical carved frieze.
     El Castillo tops off the peak at XunantunichThe highest ruin is 133 feet tall, the second tallest temple in all of Belize. Well-preserved sun god masks decorate one side of the structure. Six major plazas, more than 25 temples and palaces and a new museum are just some of the reasons why Xunantunich is one of the most visited sites.
    The Belize Tourism Development Project has invested over half a million dollars to fully excavate the site and make it more visitor-friendly.

Facts About Xunantunich

Belize was still known as British Honduras when a villager happened upon what became the second-tallest man-made structure in Belize, El Castillo, the epicenter of the site, and despite centuries of excavation, archaeologists are still unearthing mysteries. Among them are these fascinating facts:
  • Mayas named this city “Sculpture of Lady” before a ghost inhabiting the site around 1892 was said to be the reason for the name. Coincidence or foresight?
  • Given its location atop a Mopan River ridge, there’s speculation about how artisans were able to construct this complex ceremonial center with rudimentary tools.
  • At its peak, Xunantunich was home to 200,000 people but nobody knows why the civilization vanished.
  • Digs begun in the mid-1890s by British archaeologists included Thomas Gann, a surgeon. Who better to explain skeletal remains unearthed?
  • There’s speculation that a sudden disaster—perhaps an earthquake—was the reason Xunantunich was abandoned. When the gods get angry, it’s best not to stick around!
  • A reason Xunantunich remained a stable community for so long was because farms sustained the populace and helped them stay self-sufficient, but some agricultural practices are still shrouded in mystery.
  • Growth was expansive between 600 and 670 AD. Historians speculate that this may have been due to a mysterious connection to Naranjo, a Pre-Columbian city in Guatemala.
  • Mayans founding this city were precocious when it came to understanding astrology, which is how they were able to erect El Castillo on the intersection of two cardinal lines making it the city’s axis mundi.
  • Complex friezes covering exteriors were added last and depict a variety of gods, yet when it came to a unifying element, identical framing bands depicted earth and sky.
  • Archaeologist Jaime Awe is the latest scientist to unearth a mystery here. In 2016, an untouched burial chamber held a single male corpse plus ritual items, artifacts and animal bones. The team’s most exciting find? Tablets depicting the history of the secret Snake Dynasty, giving researchers yet another mystery to solve!

PHOTO GALLERY - Xunantunich