Uxbenka

Uxbenka, meaning "Ancient One," is an Early Classic Maya ceremonial center in Toledo District, Belize, and the earliest-known Maya polity in the southern Belizean lowlands with occupation dating to ca. 250-500 CE. Discovered in 1984 after reports of tomb looting near Santa Cruz village, the site features a main hilltop plaza with smaller terraced plazas below. Researchers identified seven carved stelae and thirteen uncarved stelae recording the site's political history. Recent expeditions revealed the site extends over several mountains, much larger than originally thought.