Maya Mountains
Encyclopedia
The Maya Mountains are a mountain range
in Belize
and eastern Guatemala
. The highest peaks are Doyle's Delight
at 1124 metres (3,687.7 ft) and Victoria Peak
at 1120 metres (3,674.5 ft). The Maya Mountains and associated foothills contain a number of important Maya
n ruins including the sites of Lubaantun
, Nim Li Punit
, Cahal Pech
, and Chaa Creek
; the most eminent nature reserve
within the range is the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary
.
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
in Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
and eastern Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. The highest peaks are Doyle's Delight
Doyle's Delight
Doyle's Delight is the highest peak in Belize . It lies in the Cockscomb Range, a spur of the Maya Mountains in Western Belize.The name Doyle's Delight was first coined in by Sharon Matola in 1989 and based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's book "The Lost World" , which contains the quote "there must...
at 1124 metres (3,687.7 ft) and Victoria Peak
Victoria Peak (Belize)
Victoria Peak within the Maya Mountains is the second highest mountain in Belize. The highest peak in the country, Doyle's Delight at a height of , is located SW of Victoria Peak...
at 1120 metres (3,674.5 ft). The Maya Mountains and associated foothills contain a number of important Maya
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
n ruins including the sites of Lubaantun
Lubaantun
Lubaantun is a pre-Columbian ruined city of the Maya civilization in southern Belize, Central America...
, Nim Li Punit
Nim Li Punit
Nim Li Punit, is a Maya Classic Period site in the Toledo District of the nation of Belize, located 40 kilometres north of the town of Punta Gorda, at 16° 19' N, 88° 47' 60W...
, Cahal Pech
Cahal Pech
Cahal Pech is a Maya site located near the Town of San Ignacio in the Cayo District of Belize. The site was a hilltop palacio home for an elite Maya family, and though most major construction dates to the Classic period, evidence of continuous habitation has been dated to as far back as far as 1200...
, and Chaa Creek
Chaa Creek
Chaa Creek is a tributary of the Macal River in the Cayo District in western Belize. One of the official gauging stations of the Macal is located near the confluence with Chaa Creek. There are also Maya ruins that remain largely unexcavated in the Chaa Creek catchment basin; certain early...
; the most eminent nature reserve
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
within the range is the Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary
Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary
The Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary is a nature reserve in south-central Belize established to protect the forests, fauna and watersheds of an approximately 400 square kilometre area of the eastern slopes of the Maya Mountains...
.