Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
March 8, 1576, he wrote to the king about the ruins he found here. Only about five famil-
ies were living here at the time, and they knew nothing of the history of the ruins. The dis-
covery was not pursued, and almost three centuries went by until another Spaniard, Col-
onel Juan Galindo, visited the ruins and made the first map of them.
It was Galindo's report that stimulated John L Stephens and Frederick Catherwood to
come to Copán on their Central American journey in 1839. When Stephens published the
book
Incidents of Travel in Central America, Chiapas and Yucatán
in 1841, illustrated by
Catherwood, the ruins first became known to the world at large.
Copán Today
The history of Copán continues to unfold today. The remains of 3450 structures have been
found in the 27 sq km surrounding the Grupo Principal (Principal Group), most of them
within about half a kilometer of it. In a wider zone, 4509 structures have been detected in
1420 sites within 135 sq km of the ruins. These discoveries indicate that at the peak of
civilization here, around the end of the 8th century AD, the valley of Copán had more
than 27,500 inhabitants, a population figure not reached again until the 1980s.
In addition to examining the area surrounding the Grupo Principal, archaeologists con-
tinue to make new discoveries in the Grupo Principal itself. Five separate phases of build-
ing on this site have been identified; the final phase, dating from AD 650 to 820, is what
we see today. But buried underneath the visible ruins are layers of other ruins, which ar-
chaeologists are exploring by means of underground tunnels. This is how they found the
Templo Rosalila (Rosalila Temple), a replica of which is now in the Museo de Escultura.
Below Rosalila is yet another, earlier temple, Margarita, and below that, Hunal, which
contains the tomb of the founder of the dynasty, Yax K'uk' Mo' (Great Sun Lord Quetzal
Macaw). Two of the excavation tunnels, including Rosalila, are open to the public.
Sights
1
Grupo Principal
The Principal Group of ruins is about 400m beyond the visitor center across well-kept
lawns, through a gate in a fence and down shady avenues of trees. A group of resident
macaws loiter along here. The ruins themselves have been numbered for easy identifica-
tion and a well-worn path circumscribes the site.
