Located in El Peten, Guatemala; Tikal was one of the most important mayan centers of its time . With over 3,000 buildings spread over 16 square km: palaces, temples, ceremonial platforms, ball courts, terraces, residences, plazas, causeways and steam baths, more than 200 stone stelae and altars, hundreds of graves and ritual sites. All these and over 100,000 tools, images and ornaments found in Tikal show that it had an uninterrupted history of over a thousand years.

You might recognise Tikal from its role as the Massasi Rebel Base on Yavin 4 in Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope. The view from Temple 4 was used in one scene where you can see the tops of the other temples poking through the jungle canopy.