At which Maya site is the tallest known stela located?

The tallest known Maya stela is located at Quiriguá, an ancient city in present-day Guatemala. Known as Stela E, the monument rises about 10.6 meters, including the portion buried underground, and weighs approximately 65 tons.

Stela E was dedicated in 771 CE during the reign of K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat, Quiriguá's most powerful ruler. It was carved from a single block of red sandstone quarried roughly 5 kilometers from the site. The monument depicts the king and carries inscriptions written in the elaborate Maya hieroglyphic style associated with Quiriguá.

Quiriguá's enormous monuments were political statements as much as works of art. In 738, K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat defeated and sacrificed Copán's ruler, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil, also known as 18 Rabbit. After that victory, Quiriguá broke free from Copán's authority and commissioned unusually massive stelae to display its new power.

Copán, Tikal, and Calakmul are all famous Maya sites with important monuments, which makes them plausible distractors. However, Quiriguá's Stela E remains the standout for height and is also among the largest stone monuments created in the ancient Maya world.