After visiting Zoomorph P of the Ball Court Plaza, I walked up the steps to the Acropolis. The Acropolis is physically underwhelming; most of the structures lack roofs, and even the walls are not complete. Especially compared to the acropolises of Tikal and Copan, the Acropolis at Quirigua is simple and unexceptional. However, the energy here feels great, in particular in the courtyard next to Temple XIX.
This visit I got carried away with photographing the stelae in the Grand Plaza and missed most of our group’s ceremony. I walked in near the end and got a little taste of the experience. Then I proceeded to have fun exploring the temples in the Acropolis.
According to the site sign, the Mayan acropolises are massive constructions, which the Mayans formed by building a series of structures 1 over another through many years. The Mayan rulers used these acropolises as residences and administrative places. These Mayan rulers conducted private rituals and activities in these acropolises. The Acropolis looks as it did when the last ruler of Quirigua, Jade Sky (800-810 A.D.) reworked it.
According to QUIRIGUA: A Guide to an Ancient Maya City, Matthew Looper, Copyright 2007, ISBN 978-99922-722-5-1, pages 158-159, the Mayans built the 1st version of the Acropolis in the 5th Century A.D. This 1st version consisted of 3 small mounds on the south, east, and west sides of a plaza. Between Cauac Sky’s accession to power in 725 A.D., and his beheading Copan’s 18 Rabbit in 737 A.D., Cauac Sky transformed the Acropolis, especially on the north and west sides. He specifically commissioned structure 1B-II (Roman numeral “2”), which succeeding rulers left unburied. the Mayans continued transforming the Acropolis from 738-810 A.D., building structures 1B-III (Roman numeral “3”) and 1B-IV (Roman numeral “4”). The final stages of construction included 1B-I (Roman numeral “1”) dedicated in 810 A.D., and shortly after that 1B-V (Roman numeral “5”).
