Talud-Tablero

Talud-tablero is a distinctive architectural and construction technique of Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, combining an inward-sloping surface or panel called the talud with a panel or structure set perpendicular to the ground, called the tablero, resting on top of the slope to create a visually distinctive stepped profile. Its earliest known examples appeared around 200 BC in the Tlaxcala-Puebla region, at the site of Tlalancaleca, but the technique became the dominant architectural approach of central Mexico during Teotihuacan's Early Classic period, when Teotihuacan used it extensively in its own monumental architecture. Its adoption at other Mesoamerican cities, including Tikal, Cholula, Monte Alban, Xochicalco and Kaminaljuyu, is read by archaeologists as a sign either of direct connection to Teotihuacan or of aspiration toward the power and prestige the style represented, and different cultures went on to develop their own variations on the basic talud-tablero form across periods spanning the Early through Postclassic eras.