Templo del Dios Descendente (Temple of the Descending God)

Templo del Dios Descendente (Temple of the Descending God) is one of the most beautiful temples in Tulum. This is not the result of age, but the way these entries were originally designed. As with several other structures on the site, Templo del Dios Descendente was constructed over another temple that was filled in to serve as its base. The temple gets its name from a sculpture located there that represents a god-human wearing a headdress, descending from the heavens, holding an object of some kind. This partly human descending figure is found on several other buildings in the site as well as other buildings in the area, including Coba, another archaeological site located around 50 km (30 miles) to the west. Although the temple was originally decorated with a mural of several gods, this work of art has since been lost to time and the elements. At the bottom of the stairs is a small building that is believed to have been dedicated to the goddess Ixchel. Inside this small structure that archaeologists suspect represent the male sexual organ.