House B in 1890-91

Maudslay’s 1890-91 photo of House B Palenque

House B was built by Pakal the Great but no dedication date has been found.
From the Maudslay Collection, British Museum. Used with permission under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 non-commercial license. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

House B as Alfred Maudslay found it in 1890-91. Maudslay hired laborers to help clear and prepare the site to be photographed.

Stucco decoration & Ik ventilation ducts

Maudslay’s 1890-91 photo of stucco decoration on the back wall of House B

From the Maudslay Collection, British Museum. Used with permission under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 non-commercial license. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Stucco decoration and Ik ventilation ducts once graced the walls of House B. Unfortunately none of this still exists.

Detail from back wall

Maudslay’s 1890-91 photo of stucco detail, House B

From the Maudslay Collection, British Museum. Used with permission under the CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 non-commercial license. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

Detail of the marvelous decoration found on the back wall of House B. These decorations would have been brightly painted and must have been stunning in their day. Representations of flowers and plant shoots predominate in this design.