1 Posada Honduras       6 Res. Jardin
2 Hostel Los Gemelos    7 The Red Frog
3 Res. Licuardo              8 Football field
4 Res. Allagro                 9 Restaurant
5 Museum                     10 Bank & ATM
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Short walk
to the
Ruinas
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Copyright 2008 awe. All rights reserved world wide.   We believe the planet is not lonely.     Contact us
Honduras Copan Ruinas
Copyright 2008 awe. All rights reserved world wide.   We believe the planet is not lonely.     Contact us

Copan, or Copan Ruinas is the name of both
an ancient archaeological site and the small
modern town 1km away. Copan is situated in
the west of Honduras, 10km from the
Guatemalan border. The Copan archaeological
site contains the ruins of an ancient Mayan
kingdom. It was established around 150 AD
and by the 5th century was one of the most
powerful Mayan states with a population of
about 20,000 people. For the next three
centuries Copan was ruled by a great dynasty
of kings. Much of their history up until the
year 755 is recorded on the famous
Hieroglyphic Stairway of the Copan ruins.
Around the end of the 8th century the dynasty
bagan to lose power and the city declined. It is
believed that the main reason for this decline
was over-population, to the point where the
city could no longer sustain itself from its
natural resources. The collapse of the
civilisation took place over the next several
hundred years but by the 11th century the city
had been abandoned.The site was
rediscovered by the Spanish in the 16th
century but there was little interest in the site
until 1834 when the first maps and
descriptions were published. Copan was
actually one of the first of the Mayan sites to
be excavated and studied by archaeologists
in 1891, and the excavation and restoration
continues to this day. One of the key figures
in the story of Copan's restoration is a man
called Gustavo Stromsvik, a Norwegian who
was shipwrecked on the shores of Central
America in the 1920s. He ended up in Copan
where he first saw the ruins and met with the
archaeologists working on them. Despite
having no archaeological background he
joined in with the work and in 1935 was made
director of the project. Over the years was
responsible for a large amount of the
restoration of Copan and is now something of
a local hero. He also designed and built the
museum in the town.The modern town of
Copan is a small place, its existence
seemingly based almost entirely on tourism.
Despite the high percentage of tourists it is
an attractive town with all facilities available
such as internet, laundry and banks, as well as
a large number of hostels, restaurants and
bars.
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