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Maya city of Palenque

Type Object Region Mesoamerica Time c. 431–700

Palenque was an important city-state of the southern Classic Maya lowlands in present-day Chiapas, Mexico, reaching its peak of architecture and epig…

Timeline

  1. c. 431–600Palenque · ChiapasPalenque gradually developed into a regional polity in the Usumacinta River basin; early rulers built basic temples and plazas, laying the foundation for the later palace and ritual center layout.
  2. c. 601–683Palenque palace and temple complex · ChiapasDuring the long reign of K'inich Janaab Pakal I, major construction projects were undertaken, including the Temple of Inscriptions and the Cross Group; lengthy inscriptions systematically recorded the dynasty's genealogy and religious cosmology, and the city-state's influence reached its peak.
  3. c. 684–700Palenque · ChiapasAfter Pakal's death, his successors continued some construction, but regional competition intensified and epigraphic activity decreased; the city-state's political and economic vitality gradually declined, and it fell into relative silence by the end of the seventh century.

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