Why go
Compare its design with the Temple of the Warriors and the Temple of the Large Tables: a raised platform, west-facing central stair, two rooms in sequence and serpent-shaped entrance pillars repeat a recognizable architectural pattern. Teobert Maler recorded an early description and gave it the German name behind the translated label.
The full story
A central stair on the west led up to the platform. Two rooms stood one behind the other at the top. Carved stone pillars carried the roof, and a pair of large upright serpent pillars framed the entrance. The temple's structural likeness to the better-known Temple of the Warriors and Temple of the Large Tables helps place it within the architectural language of this part of Chichen Itza. Other buildings continued along the eastern side of the court. One had a colonnade before a two-room temple; another comprised linked colonnades with partitions added between many pillars. These neighboring remains show that the temple belonged to a changing built edge, rather than standing alone. This ancient arrangement does not establish which features visitors can inspect closely today.