Topoxté

About this place

Topoxté is a Maya site on islands at the western end of Lake Yaxha, in Petén Department in northern Guatemala. It faces the great Classic city of Yaxha but is quite different, as it was the capital of the Kowoj Maya and the largest of the few Postclassic sites in the area, with small temples in the jungle. Occupation here goes back as far as the Middle Preclassic. Teobert Maler named it in 1904, the name meaning «seed of the Ramón tree», an important Maya food, and it was earlier known as Islapag. The site takes up five of six islands, which can sometimes join the land when the lake drops far. You arrive by boat to find quiet forest threaded with walls, stairways and small pyramids, with thatched shelters protecting some original parts, where layers of white plaster still show. Round stone columns lie scattered in the plazas, and tall trees shade the site. You may hear howler monkeys, as the area lies within the archaeological park. It is about 52 km in a straight line from Flores, usually visited with Yaxha by boat from the lakeshore, so arrange the trip in advance. UK travel advice urges care in border areas with Belize and Mexico, so read it and go with an organised tour. Bring water and mosquito repellent, do not climb the buildings, and watch for wet ground in the rainy season.