Although becoming Mexico, the Teotihuacan culture altar was found in Guatemala’s Tikal National Park in the pre-Hispanic centre. Mayan culturedemonstrating the interaction between the two societies, the Ministry of Culture and Sports in Guatemala announced this week.
Tikal’s huge city-state, with towering temples still standing in the jungle, fought the Khanru dynasty for centuries to rule the Mayan world.
Located north of Mexico, just outside of what is now Mexico City, Teotihuacan – “City of God” or “where man becomes a god” is best known for its twin temples of the sun and moon. In fact, it was a metropolitan city that housed over 100,000 residents and covered about eight square miles.
The still mystical city was one of the largest cities in the world, peaking between 100 BC and AD 750. However, it was abandoned before the rise of the Aztecs in the 14th century.
Archaeologist Lorena Pais, who led the discovery, said the Teotihuacan altar was “thought to have been used especially for the sacrifice of children.”
“The bodies of three children under the age of four were found on three sides of the altar,” Paiz told The Associated Press.
“Teotihuacan was a trader (Guatemala) who traveled around the country,” Pais said. “The residential complex in Teotihuacan was a home with a room and a central altar. It is like a house that was discovered, with an altar representing the goddess of the storm.”
Researchers posted a video on social media showing aerial footage of the altar and details of the structure.
Guatemala’s Ministry of Culture and Sports
“It’s unique in Guatemala and we couldn’t find anything similar,” Pais said in a statement.
Archaeologists took a year and a half to reveal the altar of the residence and analyze it before its publication.
Edwin Roman, who heads the archaeological project in Southern Tikal within the park, said the discovery indicates that it shows a wide range of sociopolitical and cultural interactions between Tikal Maya and Teotihuacan elites from 300 to 500.
Roman said the discovery reinforced the idea that Tikal was the Cosmopolitan Centre of the time, a place where people visited from other cultures, and confirmed its importance as a centre of cultural convergence.
Maria Belen Mendes, an archaeologist who was not involved in the project, said the discovery “confirms that there was an interconnected connection between both cultures and the relationship between gods and celestial bodies.”
“We see how the issue of sacrifice exists in both cultures. It was practice. It wasn’t that they were violent, it was a way of connecting with the heavenly bodies,” she said.
The altar is slightly above the width of the east to west and approximately two yards from the north to the south. It is about yards tall and covered in limestone.
The residence where it was found was an anthropomorphized figure, including a red-tone tassel, which is a detail of the Teotihuacan culture.
Researchers published their findings in the ancient Journal of Archaeology.
Researchers published the hidden Mayan city less than a year later Found in a densely populated mexican jungle By a doctoral student who unconsciously passed the site on a visit to Mexico many years ago.
Tikal National Park is located about 325 miles north of Guatemala, and the Discovery Site is guarded and there are no plans to open it to the public. Tikal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, peaked between 200 and 900 AD, when Mayan culture encompassed parts of what is now Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, El Salvador and Honduras.
Famous for its solar and moon pyramids, Teotihuacan is located about 25 miles northeast of Mexico City. The culture reached its peak between 100 and 600 AD.
Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.
