Temple of the Masks

18.4192°N, 88.7911°W.

The Temple of the Masks at Kohunlich in the southern Quintana Roo lowlands of Mexico is an Early Classic Maya pyramid built around 500 CE, named for the eight large stucco masks that flanked its central staircase. The pyramid rises 10 metres in tiered platforms of cut limestone, with the masks set into pairs on each terrace level. Each mask depicts a stylized human face with cross-hatched solar imagery — interpreted as ruler portraits fused with the Sun God K'inich Ajaw, asserting dynastic legitimacy through divine identity. Six masks survive in varying states of preservation; the original red, blue, and ochre pigment is still visible in protected recesses. The site was first reported in 1912 and excavated by Víctor Segovia Pinto and INAH teams beginning in 1968.

The Temple of the Masks is a pyramid whose builders flanked the staircase with eight portraits of the king staring outward as the sun.