Chacmultun is an ancient Maya

Maya civilization

The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...

 site in Mexico's

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

 Yucatan Province

Yucatán

Yucatán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Yucatán is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 106 municipalities and its capital city is Mérida....

 that dates to the late Preclassic period. "Chacmultun" means "mounds of red stone" in the Maya language, the site got this name from the distinct red color of the buildings there. It is located 126 km from Mérida

Mérida, Yucatán

Mérida is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Yucatán and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in the northwest part of the state, about from the Gulf of Mexico coast...

.

Ancient Chacmultun

Chacmultun's most distinguishing feature is the red stone from which its buildings are made. This color was the result of microorganisms living in the stone which turned red when they came into contact with air and water. The site was discovered in the 19th century by the Austrian explorer Teobert Maler, and was excavated in detail during the 1970s. The city center covers one square kilometer. There are four main districts of the city: Chacmultun, Cabalpak, Xetpol and the Central district. These groups of buildings were built on hills or artificial terraces to make them seem more imposing. It is thought that the city had trade links with many other contemporary Maya sites in the area, like Edzna

Edzna

Edzná is a Maya archaeological site in the north of the Mexican state of Campeche. The site is open to visitors.The most remarkable building at the plaza is the main temple. Built on a platform 40 meters high, it provides a wide overview of the surroundings. Another significant building located in...

, Oxkintok

Oxkintok

Oxkintok is a pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site on the Yucatán Peninsula, located at the northern tip of the Puuc hills - a few kilometers to the east of the modern town of Maxcanú, Yucatán, Mexico.-Etymology:...

, Uxmal

Uxmal

Uxmal was dominant from 875 to 900 CE. The site appears to have been the capital of a regional state in the Puuc region from 850-950 CE. The Maya dynasty expanded their dominion over their neighbors. This prominence didn't last long...

 and Kabah

Kabah (Maya site)

Kabah is a Maya archaeological site in the south-east of the Mexican state of Yucatán....

. Some buildings contain preserved Maya murals, which are quite rare. The city reached its peak during the Late Classic period, during the 10th century. The buildings at Chacmultun are designed in the Puuc

Puuc

Puuc is the name of either a region in the Mexican state of Yucatán or a Maya architectural style prevalent in that region. The word "puuc" is derived from the Maya term for "hill". Since the Yucatán is relatively flat, this term was extended to encompass the large karstic range of hills in the...

 architectural style, with elaborate frieze

Frieze

thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...

s decorating the buildings. The site was continuously occupied until the 15th century.