Monte Alban

Monte Alban is a monumental pre-Columbian site in Oaxaca, Mexico, founded around 500 BC as the capital of the Zapotec civilization on a strategically leveled hilltop. It grew from over 5,000 inhabitants to approximately 115,000 by 700 AD during its Classic Period peak, featuring plazas, truncated pyramids, a ball court, and approximately 170 elaborate tombs. The famous Los Danzantes carvings -- around 300 stone slabs depicting sacrificed captives -- attest to early military power. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987, the city later passed to the Mixtec before the Spanish conquest.