Mexico is a country known for its archaeological sites, including the ancient ruins of Teotihuacán, Chichén Itzá, and Palenque. However, even in a country with such a rich history, one recent find came as a surprise to researchers.
In southeastern Mexico, scientists conducted a study of an ancient Maya site that's unprecedentedly massive and symbolic. The site, now believed to be among the earliest monumental constructions in the Maya world, is changing everything archaeologists thought they knew about how Maya society came to be.
Here's what archaeologists have uncovered and what it may reveal about the civilization's earliest beginnings.
Archaeologists Say The Maya Performed Their Earliest Rituals At This 3,000-Year-Old Cross-Shaped Pit
In 2020, a team led by University of Arizona archaeologists uncovered a site in Mexico -- a country home to some of the most mysterious relics -- that's changing what they already know about Maya history. The site, known as Aguada Fénix, is believed to be the home of the largest Maya monument ever found, even exceeding Ancient Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza, according to a news report by News 4 Tucson KVOA-TV.
Archaeologists discovered that the main axis of Aguada Fénix is aligned with the sunrise on October 17 and February 24 -- dates that span 130 days. Ancient astronomy experts believe this interval reflects half of the 260-day Mesoamerican ritual calendar. Similar alignments have been found at other Maya sites with ceremonial offerings, giving researchers reason to search for one at this site.
During the study, archaeologists did, in fact, uncover a few other promising finds using laser mapping technology. They found that Aguada Fénix's layout resembles a cosmogram, a map that shows the order of the universe as discovered at several other Maya sites.
About Aguada Fénix:
Year Built:
Between 1050 and 700 BCE
Location:
Tabasco, Mexico
Year Discovered:
2020
Size:
One mile long, a quarter-mile wide, and between 30 and 50 feet high
Function:
Maya ceremonial site
Within Aguada Fénix, a cross-shaped pit was filled with ceremonial offerings, including jade ornaments and colorful mineral pigments, arranged to align with the cardinal directions. Archaeologists believe these were part of the earliest known Maya rituals, performed nearly 3,000 years ago.
"We've known that there are specific colors associated with specific directions, and that's important for all Mesoamerican people, even the Native American people in North America, but we never had actual pigment placed in this way. This is the first case that we've found those pigments associated with each specific direction. So that was very exciting," said study leader and Regents Professor of anthropology Takeshi Inomata in a news release.
Archaeologists realized that Aguada Fénix isn't just impressive in size. As they continued their research, they uncovered details that may alter the entire narrative of how the Maya civilization originated.
What This Discovery Reveals About The Maya And The Origins Of Their Ancient Civilization
Experts once thought ancient Mesoamerican societies expanded step by step, growing bigger and more complex over centuries until cities like Tikal in Guatemala and Teotihuacan in central Mexico appeared. However, the age of the site suggests that early communities were already capable of organizing massive projects in what Inomata describes as a "'big bang' of construction at the beginning of 1,000 B.C., which really nobody knew about."
Surprisingly, archaeologists also found no signs of kings or omnipotent rulers at Aguada Fénix. Instead, archaeologists believe that the builders were communities united by a shared religion, who willingly participated in the construction.
"People have this idea that certain things happened in the past - that there were kings, and kings built the pyramids, and so in modern times, you need powerful people to achieve big things. But once you see the actual data from the past, it was not like that," continued Inomata.
The discoveries at Aguada Fénix reveal that early Maya communities were capable of remarkable organization long before royal dynasties. Instead of relying on rulers, they built a monument that reflected shared purpose -- much like modern societies.