Lubaantun

LUBAANTUN

Lubaantun is the largest Maya site in Southern Belize. It is well known for the unusual style of construction. All structures are made of limestone blocks with no visible mortar binding them together. The strength of each structure lies in every hand-cut stone, which was carefully measured and shaped to fit snugly next to each neighboring block.

Lubantuun is a late Classic ceremonial center dated to 700-900 AD. Over time, the ground on which Lubantuun was built began to subsist and the mortarless blocks began to tumble. Thereafter, the site was given the name-Lubantuun- meaning "place of the fallen rocks" in the modern Maya language.

Eleven large structures tower above five main plazas and three ball courts. Unlike most other Maya ceremonial sites, the existing structures are solid and have no doorways. Another unique feature not found in other sites around the region is the rounded corners on the structures. Since no corbeled arches exist at the top of these structures, it is believed that perishable materials such as wood and thatch, were used to build superstructures on top of these pyramids.

Lubantuun is believed to have been an administrative, religious, political, and commercial center, mainly used for occasional festivals, ball games, and other sacred ceremonies. Although no stele were found here, the site is well-known for its abundance of ceramic whistle figurines. A few burial tombs are also present.

The famous yet controversial crystal skull was supposedly discovered in 1926 by Anna Mitchell-Hedges, daughter of archaeologist, F. Mitchell-Hedges,during an expedition on her seventeenth birthday. This perfectly shaped human skull carved from an 8 inch cube of rock crystal is still possessed by Anna who lives in Canada. The origin of the crystal skull remains a mystery.