Your tour briefing and some 70 miles on paved highway, east of Belize City, 
among the northern foothills of the Maya Mountain Range, is one of the 
fabled Kingdoms of the ancient Maya. It takes 
1hour and 45min. to reach the site. Along the way 
one gets to enjoy a   detailed history of our country 
and the Maya Civilization while passing through 
the many villages along the Western Highway. 
This journey takes us to the twin   towns of 
Santa Elena and San Ignacio, then onto the village 
of San Jose Succots  where we will be crossing a 
river on a hand cranked ferry. A complete tour of the site is done in one hour 
and a half. Take a guided tour across grassy plazas, marvel at the perfect 
architecture of El Castillo, one of  the three largest Maya Temples of Belize. 
See where special ceremonies were carried out honoring a pantheon of gods 
of a fantastic cosmological religion which reigned supreme in Mesoamerica for 
several thousand years.

Xunantunich (Maiden of the Rock)
What to Bring: Sun Block, hat, bug spray. Suggested footwear: Sneakers, comfortable walking shoes. Duration: 6 hrs Water & all entrance fees included. (ask about our lunch specials)
Reserve This Tour

More information about Xunantunich

Below excerpt from: Maya Cities & Sacred Caves by Jaime Awe (Cubola Press, 2006)

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

The name Xunantunich derives form the Yucatec Maya language and means “Stone Woman”.  Local legend holds that around the end of the 1800’s, a gentlemen from the village of San Jose Succotz went hunting near the site  Crossing the base of the Castillo, he was struck by the appearance of a beautiful statuesque Maya maiden, dressed in traditional “huipil” and “pik”, and dazzling in the rays of the rising sun.  The woman stood motionless by the mouth of a cave which extended beneath the large structure.  Stricken by her appearance, the man threw his gun aside and ran downhill to the village.  After recounting his tale several villagers led by the native priest returned to the site.  Arriving at the large mound they found the mouth of the tunnel, but the stone maiden has disappeared.  Thereafter locals claim that the woman has appeared to several others but none have been able to follow her into the cavern. 

In comparison to other neighboring sites, the history of Xunantunich is relatively short.  Early settlers may have established a small village at the site during the Middle Preclassic (600 – 300 BC) period, but the ancient city, as we know it, rose to prominence and declined between AD 700 – 1000.  This rather late development is unusual because it indicates that while most other cities in the region were waning during the troubled Terminal Classic period (AD 800 – 900), the fortunes of Xunantunich were on the rise.  Why was this so?  A stela at Xunantunich, that probably depicts the emblem glyph of the large Peten city of Naranjo, suggests that Xunantunich may have been a satellite of the former city.  As the authority of Naranjo faltered, the local elite at Xunantunich may have asserted control of the city and expended great effort to develop it.  The subsequent rapid growth is indicated by major construction efforts on Structure A1, the Castillo (Str. A6) and other buildings at the site.  Despite their rapid rise, however, the Xunantunich lineage was not to outlast their former Naranjo patrons by much.

The late date recorded on Stela 9 at the site is AD 830.  Thereafter we know that activity continued into the Early Postclassic period (AD 900 – 1000) but by this time the pace of development was nowhere what it was in the ninth century.  The Early Postclassic period is also very unclear and activities during this time may have been associated with small groups who attempted to reoccupy the city after abandonment.

THE SITE

The center of Xunantunich sits on an artificially leveled limestone ridge that stands almost 183 meters above sea level.  From this core area the site radiates outward, encompassing settlements that extend for several square kilometers.  The epicenter consists of four major architectural groups.

The most prominent of these is Group A, which is dominated by the 40 meter tall Structure A6 or “El Castillo”.  Often misinterpreted as the primary temple of the site, this massive structure is actually a large multi-complex building that served as dwelling, shrine, and administrative hub for the elite rulers of the center.  The eastern and western summits of El Castillo have large stucco friezes with carved elements that primarily represent astronomical symbols (e.g. the sun god, moon, and Venus).  Enclosing Plaza A1 are several other structures that served as temples/shrines (A1 to A4), and palaces (A10, A12, and A13).  Eight stelae and four alters were carved, all were discovered along the southern base of Structure A1.  Inscriptions on the carved monuments date to the Late Classic period.  Group A also contains one of the two ball courts discovered at the site (Strs. A18 and A19).

Group B mostly contains residential architecture.  These buildings were first investigated by Eric Thompson in the early 1900’s.  Subsequent work (in the 1970’s) by Elizabeth Graham and David Pendergast noted that several of the buildings were used during the Postclassic times.

Group C is located to the south of the Castillo.  Like Group B, it contains several structures that maybe have served as residences for people of relatively high status.  In contrast, Group C contains a small ball court, residential and ritual buildings.

To the southeast of the Castillo, Group D consists of 16 mounds.  Most of the architecture faces large pyramidal structure that sits on the east side of the impressive courtyard.  Two plain stelae were discovered in the courtyard as well as a sacbe (causeway) which links Group D to the main causeway that leads into Group A.

Beside the Late Classic monuments, stucco friezes, and Terminal Classic architecture, Xunantunich is also well known for its many cached offerings that contain numerous eccentric flints and obsidian objects.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORK

Early explorations of Xunantunich were conducted in 1894 and 1895 by British medical doctor, Thomas Gann.  In 1904 Teobert Mahler of the Peabody Museum of Harvard University photographed the side and produced a plan of A6.  In 1938 British archaeologist Sir Eric Thompson excavated several residential buildings in Group B, then in 1949 Linton Satterthwaite excavated the east frieze.  In 1952-53 British archaeologist, Michael Stewart, recovered several caches and donated the objects to museums in England and Germany.

In 1959-60, Euan Mackie of Cambridge University excavated Structure A15 and suggested that the site was abandoned ca. AD 900 due to an earthquake.  Between 1960 and 1970, consecutive Archaeological Commissioners, A.H. Anderson, Peter Schmidt, Joseph Palacio, and Elizabeth Graham, carried out limited excavations at the site.  In 1979 looting activities prompted Graham and Pendergast to do salvage work in Group B.

Large-scale, systematic excavation was first conducted between 1992 – 1996 by Richard Leventhal from UCLA and Wendy Ashmore from the University of Pennsylvania. Under Leventhal and Ashmore the site core was remapped, Structure A1 and the west frieze conserved, structures in the center and periphery were tested and a comprehensive map of the site’s sustaining area was completed.  Between 2000 – 2003 further intensive work was conducted by the Tourism Development Project under the supervision of Jaime Awe, Juan Louis Bonor, Carolyn Audet, and Jason Yaeger.  These archaeologists excavated and conserved the front of the Castillo, the east frieze, the Group A ball court, and Structures A4, A11, A13, A14 and A15.