![[image]](http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/belize/jpegs/palace.jpeg)
![[image]](http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/belize/jpegs/b4.jpeg)
CAHAL PECH
Large palace-type structure facing the main public plaza of Cahal PechCahal Pech is located on the southern outskirts of San Ignacio Town in the upper Belize Valley region of the Cayo District, Belize . The site center sits on the crest of a steep hill on the west bank of the Macal River. The central acropolis, approximately 900 feet above sea level, provides a commanding view of the Maya Mountains to the south and the fertile valleys of the Belize River to the northeast.
| Although the actual date that Cahal Pech was discovered is unknown, the first published record of the site dates to the late 1930s. It wasn't until the 1950s, however, that the first archaeological investigations of the site began. At this time Linton Satterthwaite from the University Museum of the University of Pennsylvania conducted preliminary mapping and excavation. Except for two brief paragraphs in a 1951 publication, Satterthwaite never produced a detailed report of this work but a copy of his notes were subsequently retrieved from the University Museum and are presently stored in the library of the Belize Department of Archaeology. In his brief summary of this research Satterthwaite concluded: |