This paper explores the imaging of the Maya city of Uxmal and its related cities of Kabah, Sayil, and Labná from the drawings and prints of the first Euro-American explorers in 1841 to the most recent photographs and reproductions. By the ninth and tenth centuries A.D., Uxmal had developed into the leading city in the Puuc Region, the Yucatán. Declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996, the official inscription notes that "The ruins of the ceremonial structures at Uxmal represent the pinnacle of late Mayan art and architecture in their design, layout and ornamentation; and the complex of Uxmal and its three related towns of Kabah, Labná and Sayil admirably demonstrate the social and economic structure of late Mayan society."

The architecture and architectural sculpture of Uxmal has been imaged by early explorers and draughtsmen, archaeologists, art historians, professional photographers, amateur enthusiasts, and tourists; and has been commissioned by research institutes and museums, governmental agencies, exposition organizers, publishers, and tour companies. This paper explores the extraordinary range of images that have resulted and how the various purposes for which these images were created are embedded in the images themselves. It includes attention to changing technologies, especially the evolution of the camera and digital imagery.

However, this paper deals largely with images taken for research, exploring in each case what is valued about the subject and why. This mental construct is seen largely to determine how each image has been approached: choices of inclusion and exclusion, angles of view, lighting, lenses, film, exposure, and digital manipulation. The camera is presented largely as a powerful research instrument, capturing not only what has been observed on site but also important information discovered during extended study at one?s home institution, in the context of related images and texts.

This paper derives from the author?s study of the reconstruction and restoration of the archaeological sites of Uxmal, Kabah, Sayil and Labná, including extensive photography 1999-2003, with rephotography of previously imaged views and details.

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