House of the Turtles

A small but beautifully decorated building on the platform below the Governor's Palace, named for the carved turtles that march along its cornice. The turtles are associated with rain in Maya cosmology, and their appearance here — alongside the omnipresent Chac masks — reinforces the interpretation of Uxmal as a city deeply concerned with water and rainfall. The building's proportions are elegant and the stone carving is particularly well preserved.

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