Nicoletta Maestri, our wonderful contributing writer for Archaeology at About.com, spent most of the spring excavating at Palenque, but while she was down in Mexico, she took a long weekend and visited Monte Albán.

Building J at Monte Alban. Photo by Nicoletta Maestri

Monte Albán is a Zapotec capital, planted on several high hills in Oaxaca state and a marvel of terraforming. Built beginning in 500 AD, Monte Albán is also the poster child for Mesoamerican propaganda at its finest: its rulers placed several plaques and engravings around the temples publicizing their conquest over their neighbors in gruesome detail.

But that's only a small part of the story!

• A Walking Tour of Monte Alban
• Nicoletta's Walking Tour of Palenque