List of Maya sites
Most important sites
Maya sites which are known to have been among the largest and most influential polities through the various eras of Maya history —Formative (or Preclassic), Classic and Postclassic— and/or which have left the most impressive archaeological remains include:

List of Maya sites

Section Title: Most important sites
Table Section Text: Maya sites which are known to have been among the largest and most influential polities through the various eras of Maya history —Formative (or Preclassic), Classic and Postclassic— and/or which have left the most impressive archaeological remains include:

Site	Location	Description	Photo

El Baúl	Escuintla Department, Guatemala	El Baúl, along with the sites of Bilbao and El Castillo, forms the Cotzumalhuapa Nuclear Zone, a large urban area dating to the Late Classic period.	-

Becan	Campeche, Mexico	Becan was a major city in the Yucatán Peninsula. It was occupied from about 550 BC, in the Middle Preclassic period and was inhabited through the entire Classic Period, finally being abandoned around the 9th century AD.	-

Calakmul	Campeche, Mexico	Calakmul was one of the two most important Maya cities in the Classic Period, when its rivalry with Tikal dominated the Maya political landscape.	-

Caracol	Cayo District, Belize	Caracol was an important lowland Maya city, it was already settled in the Late Preclassic but reached its maximum power in the Classic Period when it was first allied with Tikal and later with Calakmul.	-

El Ceibal (also known as Seibal)	Petén Department, Guatemala	Seibal was the largest Classic Period city in the Pasión River region, situated on buffs overlooking the river. The city experienced a Late Preclassic apogee before declining in the Early Classic and falling under the domination of Dos Pilas in the Late Classic.	-

Chichen Itza	Yucatán, Mexico	Chichen Itza was one of the largest Maya cities and was a major focal point in the northern Maya lowlands from the Late Classic through to the Early Postclassic period and that demonstrated a variety of Maya and non-Maya architectural styles.	-

Chunchucmil	Yucatán, Mexico	Chunchucmil was a large site that reached its apogee during the Late to Terminal Classic. The organisation of the city appears to have differed from that of other Maya sites and appears to have been geared towards a specialised coastal trade in salt.	-

Coba	Quintana Roo, Mexico	Coba is large site situated among five small lakes on a dry plain. The site is known for a network of 16 causeways linking it to neighbouring sites, the longest of which runs over 100 kilometres (62 mi) west to Yaxuna.	-

Copán	Copán Department, Honduras	Copán was the capital city of a major Classic period kingdom from the 5th to 9th centuries AD, when it was closely allied with Tikal.	-

Dos Pilas	Petén Department, Guatemala	Dos Pilas dates to the Late Classic Period, being founded by an offshoot of the Tikal dynasty in order to control trade routes in the Petexbatún region.	-

Dzibilchaltun	Yucatán, Mexico	Dzibilchaltun was a large and important city in the far north of the Yucatán Peninsula, with its principal architecture dating to the Classic Period, although activity at the site continued into the Late Postclassic when the city's main temple was already in ruins.	-

Iximche	Chimaltenango Department, Guatemala	Although short-lived, Iximche was the capital of the Kaqchikel highland kingdom at the time of the Spanish conquest of Guatemala and became the base of operations for the conquest of the highlands and Pacific coast until Spanish demands for tribute caused the Kaqchikels to break off their alliance and rebel.	-

Ixkun	Petén Department, Guatemala	Ixkun is a large site containing many unrestored mounds and ruins and is the best known archaeological site within the municipality of Dolores.	-

Kaminaljuyu	Guatemala Department, Guatemala	Kaminaljuyu was founded in the Middle Preclassic and emerged as an important city in the Late Preclassic and dominated the entire Maya Highlands.	-

Mayapan	Yucatán, Mexico	Mayapan was an important fortified city with a densely occupied area within the city walls. The principal pyramid at Mayapan was modelled after the main pyramid at Chichen Itza.	-

El Mirador	Petén Department, Guatemala	El Mirador was an enormous Late Preclassic city although construction apparently began in the Middle Preclassic and some level of occupation continued into the Classic Period.	-

Naachtun	Petén Department, Guatemala	Naachtun is situated in the extreme north of Petén, in a central location between Tikal and Calakmul, the two great Classic Period Maya powers, both of which constantly influenced its politics.

Nakbe	Petén Department, Guatemala	Nakbe was an important city in the Middle Preclassic, with its principal phase of occupation lasting from about 1000 BC to 400 BC.	Nakbe str.JPG

Naranjo	Petén Department, Guatemala	Naranjo was the capital of a kingdom from the Early Classic through to the Late Classic and formed an important link in the trade routes running from the great city of Tikal to the Caribbean Sea.

Oxkintok	Yucatán, Mexico	Oxkintok was one of the first Maya states to develop in the northern lowlands, undergoing a process of rapid development in the Early Classic Period that gave rise to an important capital with inscribed stone monuments.	-

Palenque	Chiapas, Mexico	Palenque is located in the foothills of the Chiapas highlands. The city became dominant over the western Maya lowlands during the Late Classic, and engaged in hostilities with its neighbour Toniná that eventually eclipsed it.	Palenque - El Palacio - Tour (2).JPG

El Peru (also known as Wakaʼ)	Petén Department, Guatemala	El Perú was a major Classic Period ally of Calakmul in its wars against Tikal.	-

Piedras Negras	Petén Department, Guatemala	Piedras Negras was the largest city in the region of the Usumacinta River and is known for its excellent quality Late Classic sculpted monuments.	-

Quiriguá	Izabal Department, Guatemala	Quiriguá is a relatively small site that was founded by Tikal in the Early Classic in order to control the Motagua River trade route, important for the transport of jade and obsidian.	-

Qʼumarkaj	Quiché Department, Guatemala	Qʼumarkaj (also known as Utatlán) was the Postclassic capital of the Kʼicheʼ Kingdom of Qʼumarkaj at the time of the Spanish Conquest and was one of the most powerful Maya cities at that time, dominating the Guatemalan Highlands.	-

San Bartolo	Petén Department, Guatemala	San Bartolo is a remote site in the Guatemalan rainforest and was only discovered in 2001. Most of the structures at the site date to the Late Preclassic and overlie older Middle Preclassic architecture, although the city was reoccupied in the Late Classic.	-

Tikal	Petén Department, Guatemala	Tikal was founded in the Late Preclassic but reached its greatest power in the Late Classic, when most of its great temples were constructed.	-

Tulum	Quintana Roo, Mexico	Tulum is a Late Postclassic site situated on cliffs overlooking the Caribbean Sea and was probably occupied at the time of the Spanish Conquest.	-

Uxmal	Yucatán, Mexico	Uxmal was an important capital in the western Yucatán region, demonstrating architecture in the Puuc Maya style. The site reached its apogee in the Late to Terminal Classic from about AD 800–1000 and appears to have declined at the beginning of the Postclassic Period, although the exact length of occupation of the city is unknown.	-

Yaxchilan	Chiapas, Mexico	In the Late Classic Period Yaxchilan was one of the most powerful Maya cities along the course of the Usumacinta, with Piedras Negras as its major rival.	-

Yaxha	Petén Department, Guatemala	Yaxha was a large city located upon the north shore of the lake of the same name. The city reached its maximum power in the Early Classic, when it was one of the largest capital cities in the Maya region; it was apparently allied with Tikal at that time.	-

Sentence(s)

Ixkun is a Mayan archaeological site, situated in the Petén region.

final_sentence: Ixkun is a Mayan archaeological site, situated in the Petén region.