A R C H A E O L O G I C A L
C O N S E R V A N C Y
ERIKA OLSSON
T H E
This full-scale replica of Rosalila Temple is featured at the Sculpture Museum at Copán. Rosalila Temple was originally built in A.D. 571 and
Maya expert John Henderson points to El Castillo at Xunantunich, Belize.
The Amazing Maya BELIZE AND COPÁN When: January 10–19, 2003 Where: Belize and Honduras How much: $2,495 ($295 single supplement) Our tour begins on the coast of Belize, where you’ll visit Belize City and take a boat ride up the New River to Lamanai, a Maya trading center established before Christ and occupied until A.D. 1641. From the coast you’ll travel to the inner reaches of Belize and explore the magnificent mountaintop palace of Cahal Pech. A ferry ride will take you to the ruins of Xunantunich, once an important trading center.There you’ll tour
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El Castillo, a classic example of the Maya technique of constructing a pyramid within another pyramid. From Xunantunich you’ll travel to the recently discovered ceremonial site of Caracol, possibly the largest Maya site in Latin America. You’ll spend several days investigating the magnificent city of Copán, considered by many to be the crown jewel of the southern Maya. Copán’s famous monument, the Hieroglyphic Stairway, has 63 steps that contain more than 2,000 intricately carved glyphs.
More of the Maya M AYA O F PA L E N Q U E A N D Y U C AT Á N When: February 13–23, 2003 Where: Southern Mexico How much: $2,495 ($295 single supplement) From A.D. 300 to 1200, the Maya flourished in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico. Their splendid cities, which still tower over the rain forest, testify to the sophistication of the mysterious people who built them. Our tour will visit some of the most spectacular of these cities. You’ll explore the Pyramid of the Magician at Uxmal, one of the fall • 2002
MARK MICHEL
buried within another temple.
