Coordinates: 18°22′24″N 89°21′32″W

Río Bec
Río Bec is a Pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site located in what is now southern portion of theMexican state of Campeche. The
name also refers to an architectural style (Río Bec Style) that first appeared at Río Bec and subsequently spread to other nearby sites.
The Río Bec Style is closely related to theChenes architectural style found northwest of the Río Bec region.

[1]== The archaeological site ==

The Río Bec site was first mentioned byAustrian explorer Teoberto Maler at the end
of the 19th century, though he never visited the site. The French explorer Maurice de
Perigny was the first European to visit and report on the Río Bec. The site is now
being excavated and restored by a group of French archaeologists from the CNRS
headed by Dominique Michelet. They have located several architectural groups and
their surveys and maps of several square kilometers give us a better understanding of
the ancient settlement. Excavation of the principal building at Río Bec A, a building
with three towers and several rooms, is now underway
.
The main building of group Rio Bec B

The Rio Bec architectural style

Río Bec temple pyramids are located in the central Maya lowlands. The temple-pyramids are characterized by a unique architectural
style that began to appear during the seventh century A.D. and continued into the early twelfth century A.D. The temple-pyramids
consist of a range-type building with typically two nonfunctional solid masonry towers on both ends of the range-type building [2].
The twin-towers narrow with ascension in order to give anillusion of greater height. The twin-towers appear to have stairs along their
faces leading to the temple that rests atop them. However, the steps are only a design motif that creates the illusion of functional
stairs. Even if the steps were functional, the towers rise at steep vertical angles that would make ascending them difficult. The
temples, which are located on the platform at the top of the Río Bec towers are inoperative as well. The temples are solid masses with
no interior rooms. Pseudo-doorways, which have been built into niches in the fronts of the temples, give the appearance of a
functional door [3]. Despite their nonfunctional components, the Río Bec towers hold the typical decorations of a pyramid and its
upper temple and at first glance are taken as functional pyramids. The purpose of the Río Bec temple-pyramids is unknown, but they
do resemble the twin-tower complexes ofTikal.

See also
Kejache

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This page was last edited on 6 May 2019, at 19:20(UTC).

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