The Classic period of Maya civilization marks the peak of large-scale construction and
urbanism. Multiple city-states had populations numbering more than 10 000 who shared complex
urban structure. But did urban planning already exist in Mayan cities?The study by Andrea Peiró
Vitoria considers different perspectives with special emphasis on composition aspects and
starts from the analysis of the existent cartography. First of all the creation of a
homogeneous cartographic database makes possible the comparative studies between different
sites. The use of this new database allows to provide a selection of cites that represents a
varied and comparable sample. An urban analysis methodology is used to identify the main
composition characteristics of each site and a comparative research is conducted to establish
common patterns criteria for spatial arrangements and evolutionary theories. Even though
every site has its own peculiarities this research work identifies compositionaland
geometrical features and topological repetition with a clearly intended order and orientation
that prove that urban and land-use planning existed in Mayan cities.
