Fodor's Expert Review Palacio Cantón

The most compelling of the mansions on Paseo de Montejo, this stately palacio was built as the residence for General Francisco Cantón between 1909 and 1911. Designed by Enrique Deserti, who also did the blueprints for the Teatro Peón Contreras, the building has a grandiose air that seems more characteristic of a mausoleum than a home: there's marble everywhere, as well as Doric and Ionic columns and other Italianate Beaux-Arts flourishes. It now houses the Museo Regional de Antropología de Yucatán which focuses mostly on Maya history, art, and culture and sometimes other aspects of Yucatecan life. The exhibitions are generally excellent although signage is often only in Spanish, or Spanish and Mayan, and not translated into English.