El Caracol or better known as the Observatory in the Mayan city of Chichén Itzá, Yucatan, Mexico. El Caracol, which translates to “spiral-shaped,” or, more literally, “snail,” is named after the winding staircase that rounds the interior of the central tower. The main purpose of the Observatory in Chichén Itzá was to watch and study the trajectory of Venus.