This Japanese-funded research center is devoted to the identification and restoration of pieces unearthed at the site. The 1300-sq-meter facility has a huge cache of items to sort through, and you can watch the restorers at work. Though not strictly a museum per se, it features an excellent gallery on the different materials used by Maya craftspeople.

The center is home to the Museo Sylvanus G Morley for an indefinite period while that museum is under restoration.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Tikal attractions

1. Museo Sylvanus G Morley

0.08 MILES

This museum exhibits a number of superb ceramic pieces from excavations, including incense burners and vases, with descriptions of their uses and…

2. Museo Lítico

0.09 MILES

The larger of Tikal’s two museums is in the visitors center. It houses a number of carved stones from the ruins. The photographs taken by pioneer…

3. Complejo Q

0.46 MILES

Complejo Q and Complejo R, about 300m north of the Gran Plaza, are very Late Classic twin-pyramid complexes with stelae and altars standing before the…

4. Complejo R

0.47 MILES

Complejo R, about 300m north of the Gran Plaza, is a very Late Classic twin-pyramid complex with stelae and altars standing before the temples.

5. Grupo H

0.68 MILES

Grupo H, northeast of Complexes P and M, with one tall, cleared temple, had some interesting graffiti within its temples.

6. Templo VI

0.74 MILES

Templo VI is one of the few temples at Tikal to bear written records. On the rear of its 12m-high roofcomb is a long inscription – though it will take…

7. Complejo P

0.74 MILES

About 1km north of the Gran Plaza is Complejo P. Like Complejo N, it's a Late Classic twin-temple complex that probably commemorated the end of a katun.

8. Complejo M

0.74 MILES

Complejo M, next to Complejo P, was partially torn down by the Late Classic Maya to provide building materials for a causeway, now named after Alfred P…

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