Mexico/Veracruz: Santiago Tuxtla

Santiago Tuxtla is a tiny town inland in the Veracruz State, founded all the way back in 1531 by conquistador Hernan Cortez. But what the town is most famous for are the giant colossal Olmec heads that were unearthed here. The Olmecs were the earliest known Mesoamerican civilization, thriving in the coastal present-day Veracruz and Tabasco states from 1500 to 400 BC. Among the artifact left from the Olmecs are these massive Easter-island-like statues of big round heads. Several have been taken to various museums, but the biggest one still remains in Tuxtla and stands on the central square.