Palenque

Palenque lies in the rainforest foothills of Chiapas near the modern town of Palenque, in southern Mexico. The city flourished in the Classic period, especially in the 7th century under King K'inich Janaab' Pakal I, who ruled from 615 to 683 AD, and his son K'inich Kan Bahlam II. After about 800 AD Palenque was gradually abandoned, and the jungle covered the city until it was rediscovered and explored in the 18th century. Only a small part of the ancient city, estimated at a fraction of the buildings, has been excavated. The Temple of the Inscriptions is the best-known structure: a stepped pyramid with a long hieroglyphic text on its panels, and a hidden stairway discovered by Alberto Ruz Lhuillier in 1952 that led to Pakal's tomb. The carved sarcophagus lid and the famed jade funerary mask were recovered from the burial, and the mask is now displayed in the Museo Nacional de Antropología in Mexico City. The Palace is a complex of courtyards and galleries with a four-storey tower and fine stucco reliefs. The Temple of the Sun, Temple of the Cross and Temple of the Foliated Cross form a group around a small plaza, with carved tablets recording dynastic history and mythology. A site museum displays stucco heads, ceramic incense burners and inscribed panels. Interpretation is largely through signage and the museum, and the jungle setting is part of the visit. Restoration was carried out in the 20th century by INAH, and climbing is restricted on several of the monuments, including Pakal's temple, in recent years. Palenque was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1987. Humidity, vegetation and rainfall make conservation an ongoing challenge, though the main buildings are generally in good condition.