Between 1926 and 1928 Charlot spent three seasons deeply immersed in the excavation of Mayan temples at Chichen Itza. Hired by Sylvanus Morley of the Carnegie Institution and under the field direction of Earl H. Morris, Charlot meticulously traced and copied bas-reliefs and painted surfaces as they were unearthed, creating an invaluable guide to the reconstruction of some of the key structures of the temple complex. The work had a major influence on his own art, and led to a long friendship with Earl Morris and his wife Ann, a fellow painter-copyist at Chichen Itza. The Morrises took care of Charlot after his mother died in New York City in the winter of 1929, and together the three co-authored "The Temple of the Warriors at Chichén Itzá, Yucatan", published in two volumes in 1931 and considered a classic in its field