A view of El Castillo at Xunantunich, a Mayan ruin dating from 200AD - 900AD.

The name "Xunantunich" means "Stone Woman" in the local Mayan tongue, but the actual city name has been found: "Kat Wiz", meaning "Clay Mountain".

This pyramid was built in stages over many years (see the description of the East Frieze for more info), and is the second tallest in Belize.

Xunantunich is literally next to the Guatemalan border, and was "rediscovered" by a British officer in the late 1800s. Since then, there have been several excavations of the site, mostly by US universities.