Travels thru Latin America: Copán Ruinas

I arrived in Copan in torrential rain. As is usual the streets themselves had turned to rivers, and the preferred hotel was full, so it was back to living in a dormitory in a backpackers hostel. The next day the sky had cleared somewhat and I walked with an American family to the ruins which were just over 1km away from the edge of town. We shared the costs of hiring a guide, which made it quite affordable. It was however, the most expensive site that I have visited. The entrance ticket alone to the whole site and museum around US$40 and the guide cost another US$10, although I think this was down to the negotiating and Spanish skills of the father. The deal had been done without consulting me.

Every time I visit Mayan ruins, there is a feeling of peace, mostly caused by the consciousness of the passing eons as the jungle has entwined itself around many of the structures, and the natural rock on the sculptures and pyramids is complemented by the lush green vegetation. However, when this was a living city, it would have been bery different; instead of grass around the structures, the whole would have been paved with stucco, and plastered with the same, and been predominantly blood red with details picked out in ochre, green and blue. The environmental impact of covering over the fertile valley with this impermeable layer, coupled with the vast amounts of firewood needed to anhydrate the limestone has been touted as a reason for this city state's collapse, as the farmers were driven up on to the hillsides, where the soils were poorer and became even worse with the soil erosion. On top of this, the loss of the trees probably altered the rainfall patterns making it even harder to eke out a living. Even so, the magnificence if the sculptures and the decoration if the buildings is beautiful and moving.

Macaws, emblems of Copán very colourful with the most awful raucous cry, a complete contrast to the plumage. They are fed here , but are free to fly around.

The statue of the vision serpent, manifest dirung festivals and sacrifices most visibly as smoke from the burnt offerings. However, they would carry in their mouths the apparition of the ancestors who were bid to appear

The tranquil North Plaza

Sacrificial stone over which the human offering would be splayed with his back arched, whilst the priest king would cut out his heart or decapitate him with an obsidian blade. Note the gulley for the blood to run off and be collected before being mingled with copal incense and burned.

A "tree" as alluded to in the "Forest of Kings". The Mayans believed that trees were the links between the underworld and the gods and spirits in the sky, and the stelae were seen as equally important spiritual bridges between the 2 worlds

A beautiful Macaw's head adorning the building at the top of the eastern side of the ball court

The famous hieroglyphic staircase, now protected giving details of the provenance of the dynasty of the ruling family. 18 Rabbit commissioned many such monuments to legitimise his rule. The large figures on the treads comprise the long line of kings from the beginning of the the dynasty. The glyphs apparently talk about rituals too, but our guise although claiming to be able to read them, didn't deign to enlighten us. (He also claimed to be a descendant of the last Mayan king, but with only an oral record for the last millenium, my guess he's about as related as the average greek waiter is to Aristotle) 18 Rabbit met with an unfortunate end, as the client ruler he installed in Quirigua eventually turned on him, captured his patron and sacrificed him, subjugating Cop'an for a time.