“Several decades of field work point to strong connections between the Mayan dynastic headquarters of Tikal, in the current Guatemala, and the distant hegemonic metropolis of Teotihuacán in central Mexico. These connections have to do with the nature of political ties between distant areas and the quasi-imperial control systems in Mesoamerica”, describes the publication: “A Teotihuacanic altar in Tikal, Guatemala: Mexican central ritual and elite interaction in the Mayan lowlands, of the Magazine Antiquity, of the University of Cambridge.
Archaeologist Edwin Román Ramírez describes that this altar was possibly used for rituals to the god of the storm, he does not believe that he is linked to sacrifices, because the evidence of smoke around reflects that there were burning to honor that deity. The altar colors: red, yellow, black and orange describe the cardinal points, says Román. Although the meaning of each color is unknown, it can be interpreted that the altar is the center of that microcosm
“It helps to understand that there were people from other places in Tikal, people who lived there, that this contact with Teotihuacán had many nuances, but this is the strongest evidence we have, the presence of people who had a house in Tikal,” says Román. The green obsidian is another element that denotes the presence of other cultures in Tikal. Precisely the color of this material comes from Pachuca, Mexico and could be related to a commercial link, says the archaeologist.
The investigation
The discovery began in 2019 with the results obtained from scanning with Lidar technology, through the financing of the Mayan Cultural and Natural Heritage Foundation (Pacunam) and its ally, Hitz Foundation. In the excavation process in the 6D-XV group, a decorated altar was found (6D-XV-Sub 3) in the center of a patio, in which several episodes are evidenced. It is on a naturally level elevation, located 125 meters from the 6D-105 pyramid.
This group had two constructive stages: the first, from 300 to 400 d. C., called Venado, and the second, from 400 to 450 d. C., called kid. In the center of the patio, the altar is located, a small slope-tablo structure of 1.1 m high, rectangular (1.8 x 1.22 m), with its long facade oriented to the west. The slope is low, 40 cm high; The south and north sides are 1.40 m wide and 1.85 m, from east to west.
Its platform, burned on its central axis, is painted with red bands and is arranged with a black delineated on the floor. There are four burials or deposits adjacent to the altar. The sitting position of people responds to mortuary patterns during the phases of Tlamimilolpa (250-350 d. C.) and Xolalpán (350-450 d. C.) in Teotihuacán. Fragments of censers were also found, related to this ancient city in Mexico.
For Román, the most relevant findings of this research are: the discovery of excavations, which by their spatial organization are more common in central Mexico. The second is that the altar that is at the center has the Teotihuacano -style architecture and its murals, which reflects that those who inhabited in that house are people of Teotihuacán, says the archaeologist.
He explains that these findings allow us to understand the presence of a society, possibly close to the ruling elite. “There are certain countries that have more strength than others and we can see it represented in certain actions. Here we are seeing the presence of people belonging to one of the most important cities at that time and that Tikal had very close contact because they are very close to Tikal’s heart, people close to the ruling elite, surely,” he says. According to a publication of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the structure, known as Grupo 6D-XV, is distinguished by its slope-book architecture, a characteristic of Teotihuacán.
Its murals, surprisingly well preserved, have revealed their original colors (red, yellow and blue) thanks to the use of advanced technology. One of the conclusions of this research, according to that portfolio, is that the 6D-XV group was inhabited by people with links or from Teotihuacán, who brought their funeral, architectural traditions and were free to express their own identity. “In addition to bringing their funeral and architectural traditions, they were also free to express their own cultural identity and beliefs in a key space within Tikal. This confirms the cosmopolitan character of this important Mayan city,” he said.
The palace
Román explains that before the altar of Teotihuacán, in the 80s, there was another finding: a palace with four squares, in one of them, the north, found a boarding slope that had a sculpture known in archeology as the “Tikal marker”, it is a mixture of theotihuacanic and Mayan art, it is a type of banner that was placed in Teotihuacán and emulate The sculptural.
The archaeologist says that this finding had two panels written in Maya, in one of them, Dr. David Stuart identified that they speak that Tikal was conquered by people arriving from Teotihuacán with his Mayan allies. The conquest occurred on January 16, 378, after Christ. According to the archaeologist, there are still several questions about the presence of people from Teotihuacán in Tikal, there is still no certainty if they were merchants, they belonged to the elite, or lived there by marriage. “The role of them within Tikal’s society is something we still don’t understand,” says Román.
The PAST director adds that they carry out the studies of ancient DNA, so that, in three years, these results allow them to know in depth who those people were and interpret themselves were from Teotihuacán or were Maya, and what their relationship was.
Who is Edwin Román Ramirez?
He has a degree in Archeology from the University of San Carlos de Guatemala. He obtained a master’s degree and a doctorate at the University of Texas in Austin and graduated in 2017. He began his work as an archaeologist in 2000, in Zacapa. He has worked on ten archaeological projects and has taught talks in the United States, France, Switzerland, Japan and Colombia. He is currently the director of the archaeological project of southern Tikal (PAST).
He has studied the murals of San Bartolo, Petén, especially of U-1A structure, IXIM, which had a writing of that pre-classical era.
He also documented the tomb of the first king of Zotz and the “Temple of the Night Sun”, decorated with different sun representations, located on the El Zotz archaeological site, in the department of Petén.