Xlapak

Xlapak (or Xlapac) is a small Maya archaeological site in the Yucatan Peninsula of southeastern Mexico. It is located in the heart of the Puuc region, about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the archaeological site of Labná and a similar distance from Sayil, lying directly between the two sites.[2] It consists of three main groups in a valley of the Puuc Hills in Yucatán State,[3] a region of karst limestone forming the only major topographical feature of the peninsula.[4] The closest town is Oxkutzcab, about 30 kilometres (19 mi) to the northeast.

A palace at Xlapak
Masks of the rain god Chaac at Xlapak.[1]

The site dates from the Late to Terminal Classic periods and was sited in an area suitable for agriculture.[5]

Restoration at Xlapak, and other nearby archaeological sites, was carried out in the first half of the 20th century by the Mexican Instituto de Antropologia e Historia (Institute of Anthropology and History).[6] Further archaeological investigation was carried out in 1965 under the direction of César A. Sáenz.[7]

The site

The site core is located in the flat valley bottom, while in the surrounding hills the remains of perishable structures have been found.[3]

The main feature of Group 1 is the Palace, which consists of nine rooms with decorated facades. Another palace is located in Group 2, it is decorated with columns.[3] The architecture is an example of the ostentatious style of the Classic or Fluorescent Puuc, in common with the nearby sites of Sayil, Labna, Kabah, and Uxmal.[8] Typical of this style are the highly decorated upper portions of the buildings that extend above the ceiling height.[9] The decorations at Xlapak are well preserved and include masks of the Yucatec Maya rain god Chaac.[1]

Notes
  1. Digital Collections of the Brigham Young University
  2. Toscano Hernández & Huchim Herrera 2004, p. 84. Lorenzo Vidal & Muñoz Cosme 1997, p.360. Carmean & Sabloff 1996, p.319.
  3. Toscano Hernández & Huchim Herrera 2004, p.84.
  4. Smyth & Dore 1992, p.4.
  5. Toscano Hernández & Huchim Herrera 2004, p.81.
  6. Rhyne, p.21.
  7. Rhyne, p.36.
  8. Lorenzo Vidal & Muñoz Cosme 1997, p.364.
  9. Lorenzo Vidal & Muñoz Cosme 1997, p.365.

References
  • Carmean, Kelli; Jeremy A. Sabloff (Autumn 1996). "Political Decentralization in the Puuc Region, Yucatan, Mexico". Journal of Anthropological Research. Albuquerque, New Mexico: University of New Mexico. 52 (3): 317–330.
  • Carmean, Kelli; Dunning, Nicholas; Kowalski, Jeff Karl (2005). "High Times in the Hill Country: A Perspective from the Terminal Classic Puuc Region". In Arthur A. Demarest; Prudence M. Rice; Don S. Rice (eds.). The Terminal Classic in the Maya lowlands: Collapse, transition, and transformation. Boulder: University Press of Colorado. pp. 424–449. ISBN 0-87081-822-8. OCLC 61719499.
  • Lorenzo Vidal, Cristina; Gaspar Muñoz Cosme (1997). J.P. Laporte; H. Escobedo (eds.). "La arquitectura de las ciudades Mayas del área Puuc, Yucatán" (PDF). X Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala (in Spanish). Guatemala: Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología: 360–376. Archived from the original (versión digital) on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 2009-05-16.
  • Rhyne, Charles. "Architecture, Restoration, and Imaging of the Maya Cities of Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil, and Labná: The Puuc Region, Yucatán, México" (PDF). Annotated Bibliography of the Puuc Region. Portland, Oregon: Reed College. Retrieved 2009-05-16.
  • Smyth, Michael P.; Christopher D. Dore (March 1992). "Large-Site Archaeological Methods at Sayil, Yucatan, Mexico: Investigating Community Organization at a Prehispanic Maya Center". Latin American Antiquity. Washington, DC: Society for American Archaeology. 3 (1): 3–21. doi:10.2307/971927. JSTOR 971927.
  • Toscano Hernández, Lourdes; José Huchim Herrera (November–December 2004). "La Región Puuc de Yucatán" (PDF). Arqueología Mexicana (in Spanish). Mexico: Editorial Raíces. XII (70): 80–87. ISSN 0188-8218. OCLC 29789840. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 6, 2010.

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