The Great Plaza is characterized by its wide open spaces. It was mainly used for public events, with the capacity to accommodate thousands of people. To the far North, the Plaza is framed in three of its sides with steps which served as bleachers for spectators. Seven steale and eleven altars now rise in the center of this open theater (we know of at least one that used to be there from early explorers' accounts), forming the most beautiful sculpture ensembles of Copan. This must have served as a fitting backdrop scenario for rituals of the greatest social importance.

To the far South there is another theater with its own set of vast steps, which rise up to the Acropolis and which overlooks the ballcourt, to one side of the Hieroglyphic Stairway. This was the sports arena of Copan, with outstanding ritual importance, as was the tradition throughout Mesoamerica.

The Great Plaza is dotted with many steale and altars that are often paired together. The stelae were erected as monuments to mark important dates for the Copan Kings, such as a period ending or a k'atun, that marks a span of 7,200 days or 20 years. Stelae also recorded the great deeds of the ruler who commissioned it or their communications with the Gods. These steale were stuccoed and richly painted, they were public displays of grandeur, used as propaganda by the rulers. Scientists have learned a great deal from the Copan stelae in recent years, as they contain a great amount of information about the history of Copan and the neighboring kingdoms during the Late Classic Maya period.

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