<P> The most prolific builders of these step pyramids were the pre-Columbian civilizations . The remains of step pyramids can be found throughout the Mayan cities of the Yucatán, as well as in Aztec and Toltec architecture . In many of these cases, successive layers of pyramids were built on top of the pre-existing structures, with which the pyramids expanded in size on a cyclical basis . This is true of the Great Pyramid of Cholula and of the Great Pyramid of Tenochtitlan . </P> <P> Step pyramids were also a part of South American architecture, such as that of the Moche and the Chavín culture . </P> <P> There are a number of earthwork step pyramids within North America . Often associated with mounds and other mortuary complexes across the Eastern Woodlands (concentrated in the North American Southeast), step pyramids were constructed as ceremonial centres by the Mississippian cultures (900 - 1500 CE), and are regarded as a facet of the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex . </P> <P> The largest earthen work step pyramid of this type in North America is Monk's Mound, located in present - day Cahokia, Illinois . With the base of the structure exceeding 16 acres Monks Mound is also one of the largest pyramids by area in the world (after La Danta and Great Pyramid of Cholula). </P>

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