Ruins Of Copan, Honduras
We began our journey to the ruins of Copan by taking a bus from where the ship was anchored, Puerto Cortez, to the picturesque town of Copan. With cobblestone streets and tile roofs this town also reminded us of its Spanish past. Our first stop at the ruins was at the Archaeological Park, where we walked through the Ball Court, the Great Plaza, the Hieroglyphic Stairway, and the Acropolis.
The main structure of Copan is one of the largest in the Maya area with respect to the quantity of sculpture, including the stelae, the altars, and the longest written text of the New World. Archaeologists have discovered that the hieroglyphic texts narrate the life and times of the Mayan rulers. A good example of this is the Altar Q (above), which celebrates the accession to power of Yax Pac, the sixteenth ruler of Copan. The figures in the middle of this side of the altar represent Yax Pac (on the right) “inheriting the power” from Yax K’uk Mo’, the first ruler (on the left).
Whenever people talk about ruins, it brings to mind romantic and fanciful ideas about the glory and grandeur of the epoch; how they evolved from nomads and gatherers, into living in cities and producing monuments of stone. When walking through the ruins of Copan, one gets the feeling of knowing the kings of the great city. Not only by their portraits on the stelae, the wooden lintels, and the enormous temples they left behind, but also because through the monuments, the kings speak to us about their strengths and weaknesses, failures and achievements.
We began our journey to the ruins of Copan by taking a bus from where the ship was anchored, Puerto Cortez, to the picturesque town of Copan. With cobblestone streets and tile roofs this town also reminded us of its Spanish past. Our first stop at the ruins was at the Archaeological Park, where we walked through the Ball Court, the Great Plaza, the Hieroglyphic Stairway, and the Acropolis.
The main structure of Copan is one of the largest in the Maya area with respect to the quantity of sculpture, including the stelae, the altars, and the longest written text of the New World. Archaeologists have discovered that the hieroglyphic texts narrate the life and times of the Mayan rulers. A good example of this is the Altar Q (above), which celebrates the accession to power of Yax Pac, the sixteenth ruler of Copan. The figures in the middle of this side of the altar represent Yax Pac (on the right) “inheriting the power” from Yax K’uk Mo’, the first ruler (on the left).
Whenever people talk about ruins, it brings to mind romantic and fanciful ideas about the glory and grandeur of the epoch; how they evolved from nomads and gatherers, into living in cities and producing monuments of stone. When walking through the ruins of Copan, one gets the feeling of knowing the kings of the great city. Not only by their portraits on the stelae, the wooden lintels, and the enormous temples they left behind, but also because through the monuments, the kings speak to us about their strengths and weaknesses, failures and achievements.
