Labná Arch: East side
Paul Gendrop describes the east façade of the Labná arch as possessing "great sobriety...the principal motif is large stepped frets that stand out in strong relief over a background of colonnettes strongly underlined by the projection of the moldings."
Paul Gendrop, Rio Bec, Chenes and Puuc Styles in Maya Architecture, p. 190.
Extremely stylized mask
The two stepped frets which meet in a "V" in this detail on the east side of the Labná Arch suggest an extremely stylized mask to George Andrews, author of Pyramids & Palaces, Monsters & Masks: The Golden Age of Maya Architecture.
Puuc construction techniques
This photograph shows the damaged portions of buildings which once were connected to the Arch. It is easy to see how Puuc construction techniques utilizing interior rubble fill surfaced with plain and mosaic stonework were used to build the Labná arch. These are very solid buildings.
Compared with ornate western side
The sober east side of the arch faced inward toward the El Mirador courtyard and pyramid, as well as toward the sacbé leading to the palace. The more ornamented western side fronted a more public residential or commercial courtyard.