Archaeologists have discovered a large Mayan palace in an ancient city that was likely used by the society's elite more than 1,000 years ago.

Excavations at the site of the ancient city of Kuluba, near the modern-day city of Cancun, Mexico, revealed the relics.  

Early analysis of the palatial remains reveal it was vast - measuring 180ft (55m) long, 50ft (15m) wide and 20ft (six metres) high. 

The Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) claims it was inhabited for two long periods between 600-1050 AD. 

The Mayan civilisation reached its peak between 250 and 900 AD, when it ruled large swaths of what is now southern Mexico, Guatemala, Belize and Honduras.

It came to a crushing end with the invasion and colonisation by the Spanish.  

The palace was discovered in the east of the Kuluba archaeological zone, a key pre-Hispanic site in Mexico's Yucatan state.

Along with the palace, Mexican experts are exploring four other structures in the area.

Early analysis reveals an altar, remnants of two residential buildings and a round structure believed to be an oven.