Xunantunich Mayan Ruins Xunantunich, San Jose Succotz, Belize Last Updated: 05/21/2022 | |
Xunantunich is an Ancient Maya archaeological site in western Belize. Xunantunich is located atop a ridge above the Mopan River, well within sight of the Guatemala border. It served as a Maya civic ceremonial centre to the Belize Valley region in the Late and Terminal Classic periods. At that time, when the region was at its peak, nearly 200,000 people lived in the Belize Valley. | |
The name Xunantunich derives from the Yucatec Maya language and means “Stone Woman.†Local legend holds that around the end of the 1800s, a gentleman from the village of San Jose Succotz Belize 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,â€,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 their native priest returned to the site. Arriving at the large mound they found the mouth of the tunnel, but the stone maiden had disappeared. Thereafter locals claim that the woman has appeared to several others but none have been able to follow her into the cavern. |
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