El Cementerio: Uxmal’s Newly Accessible Plaza of Skulls
Uxmal is known for the grandeur of its monuments, as well as for its symmetry, intricate mosaics, and many ceremonial plazas.
Most famous among these plazas are the quadrangle of the birds, which faces the Grand Pyramid of the Magician, Las Monjas, and El Palomar, which was restored and reopened to the public just a couple of years ago.
Visitors to Uxmal now have the opportunity to explore yet another of these plazas, known as El Cementerio. Despite what many believe, this architectural complex is not an actual cementerio (cemetery) but rather takes its name from the several bas-reliefs of skulls and crossbones that adorn its four ceremonial platforms.
While bas-reliefs of skulls are a fairly common feature of post-classic Mesoamerican cultures, the iconography on the platforms in the cemetery is different both aesthetically and symbolically from that found on tzompantli platforms at sites like Chichén Itzá and Tula.
El Cementerio Platforms, examples of a Tzompantli?
In short, no. Tzompantli platforms, also known as skull platforms, depict bare human skulls and were used both as decorative elements at temples like those in Tenayuca (in Mexico state) and, on occasion, as platform structures on which to display human heads of enemies captured in battle or sacrificed. In Tenochtitlan (current-day Mexico City), actual human skulls were incorporated into the structures of the tzompantli itself.
However, the platforms at El Cementerio at Uxmal depict human skulls wearing what appear to be helmets and feather earrings. It is also worth noting that a handful of these skull reliefs are set upside down, in a manner reminiscent of similar imagery seen at Toniná in Chiapas.
Caption: Another bas-relief sculpted element (towards the left of the image) on the platforms appears to be a shell of some kind, or what some researchers refer to as the death eye motif.Photo: Carlos Rosado van der Gracht / Yucatán Magazine
A tzompantli, meaning “skull rack” in Nahuatl, was a structure used by several ancient Mesoamerican civilizations. It was essentially a wooden rack or fence used to publicly display the skulls of human sacrifices, most often prisoners taken in battle.Photo: Carlos Rosado van der Gracht / Yucatán Magazine
The most southern structure at El Cementerio is the best-preserved and best-restored of the architectural features found within the plaza, though its staircase has been completely lost.Photo: Carlos Rosado van der Gracht / Yucatán Magazine
The structure flanking the western quadrant of the plaza, though heavily damaged, is impressive nonetheless. With a keen eye, the pattern of its limestone steps is still visible.Photo: Carlos Rosado van der Gracht / Yucatán Magazine
Several structures at Uxmal remain off-limits to visitors, for example, this Tablero-Talud step pyramid in the south of the site.Photo: Carlos Rosado van der Gracht / Yucatán Magazine
The cross skull design with the four-pointed flower set behind it, among the skulls on the El Cementerio’s four platforms, is interesting, as nothing quite like it exists at other Puuc sites, though similar motifs have been found on pottery at sites along the Usumacinta, including Piedras Negras.Photo: Carlos Rosado van der Gracht / Yucatán Magazine
The crosbbone imagery is fairly straightforward, with little additional decorative elements aside from what appears to be a four-pointed flower (again, perhaps a reference to the cardinal points), and may have been a way to incorporate contemporary X-shaped Puuc designs into the platforms, while simultaneously contributing to the overall aesthetic.
These four elaborately adorned platforms, which are 35 inches tall, also bear inscriptions that suggest they were constructed sometime around the year 800 C.E. Their configuration within the plaza is somewhat unusual. Still, given that there are four of them, each likely corresponds to one of the four cardinal points.
What purpose did these platforms serve?
Archaeologists from the INAH, including José Huchim Herrera, have speculated that these platforms were never completed, as the northwestern quadrant of the site was deprioritized to complete the construction of a larger-scale project, such as Las Monjas, to the north. However, there is also the possibility that these low-lying platforms were designed with a small size in mind to serve ritual purposes, such as the sacrifice of animals like deer. Though admittedly speculative, it does line up with the large numbers of both carved deer bones and burned bodies found all over Uxmal and the greater Puuc region.
On the south side of the El Cementerio quadrangle, the most notable feature is a large truncated pyramid with a crested temple atop, with three remaining/restored chambers. Another notable structure, a vaulted building, is located to the west: it is a larger pyramid that supports three temples, of which only the central building remains standing. The smaller side constructions have almost disappeared.
Another recently opened section of Uxmal to the public is the Templo de Los Falos, located at the far south of the archaeological site, near the structure known as La Casa de la Vieja, which is yet to reopen to the public. El Templo de los Falos (Temple of the Falices) is severely deteriorated but likely served a ritual function related to fertility, for obvious reasons.
If you are interested in visiting Uxmal or any of the other fascinating Maya archaeological sites in the region, email carlos.rosado@gmail.com for information on personalized tours.
Senior Editor Carlos Rosado van der Gracht, PhD, is a journalist, photographer, and expedition leader. Born in Mérida, Carlos holds degrees from universities in Mexico, Canada, and Norway. Most recently, he earned a doctorate in Heritage Studies in 2026.
