The Nunnary (top right image) is the largest building in a complex of structures in the southern part of Chichén Itzá. It stands over seventeen meters in height. Various stairways lead to two upper temples, decorated in the Puuc style, which are built on top of each other on an enormous base.

When the early Spanish explorers visited the ruins, they thought the temple's numerous chambers had been used as cells for Maya nuns and called the structure Las Monjas (House of the Nuns). However, researchers believe that this building was more likely used for civil ceremonies than as a Mayan nunnary.

The second building called Chichanchob (pictured on the right) means "little holes". The name was given to the structure because of the small holes on the crest of the roof. The building was also known as the "Red House" because of the red paint which can still be seen in frescos in the inside chamber.

The crested roof is an architectural element from the region of the Chenes (now Campeche). It created a special effect which builders used to make temples appear larger than they actually were. The numerous masks of Chaac, the rain god, and the other decorations on the stone frieze are typical of the Puuc architectural style which originated in the Puuc hills region of the Yucatán to the south of Chichén Itzá. When the Itzá occupied the city centuries after the Chichanchob was constructed, they built a small ball court on the platform of the structure.

[Based on Let's Learn about Chichén-Itzá , Chichén-Itzá: The City of the Wise Men of the Water. by Roman Chan, All About the Mayas. by C. Dorese. published by Producción Editorial Dante (Mérida, Mexico) and Incidents of Travel in the Yucatan by Stephens and Catherwood published by Smithsonian Institute Press (Washington D.C.). All available in paperback and highly recommended.]