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Zaculeu was first occupied in the 5th century, and the buildings from this era show the influence of Teotihuacan. The bulk of the site's construction dates from the Post-Classic era, from the 10th century until the early 16th century.
The site contains a number of temple-pyramids and governmental palaces around a series of plaza, and a court for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame. The site was originally fortified with walls.
The city was attacked Conquistador Pedro de Alvarado in 1525, but the well defended city at first threw back the Spanish. Alvarado left his brother Gonzalo de Alvarado in charge of a siege, with 40 horsemen, 80 Spanish footsoldiers, and some 2,000 native allies from central Mexico. The city was defended by Mam king Caibil Balam commanding some 5,000 (the chronicles are not clear if this is the number of soldiers or the total population of Zaculeu).
After a siege of over a month the Mam were reduced to starvation and in October surrendered to the Spanish. After this Zaculeu it was abandoned, and the new city of Huehuetenango established some 5 km away.
In the late 1940sCenturies: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s Years: 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 Events and trends Technology First nuclear bomb First cruise missile, the the United Fruit CompanyThe United Fruit Company ( 1899 1970) became prominent in trading tropical fruit (notably bananas and pineapples) from Third World plantations to the United States and Europe. The company is cited as an archetypal example of multinational influence extend sponsored archeological excavations and restorations of the structures. The later included recoating a number of the buildings with white plasterThis article is about the building material. For the adhesive medical dressing, see Sticking plaster. Plaster of Paris or simply plaster is a type of building material based on calcium sulfate hemihydrate, nominally (CaSO). It is created by heating gypsum, as it was known that many were originally, but this has seldom been redone in restoring Pre-Columbian buildings.
ceremonial center of Zaculeu, ballcourt in front center
The site is open for tourismTourism can be defined as the act of travel for the purpose of recreation, and the provision of services for this act. A tourist is someone who travels at least fifty miles from home, as defined by the World Tourism Organization (a United Nations body). visits and has a small museumA museum is a non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, and open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, material evi.