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99-538: The earliest major architecture dates to around 500 BC, in the Late Preclassic period (c. 350 BC – AD 250). In the late 4th century AD Río Azul was dominated by the city of Tikal and its great central Mexican ally Teotihuacan . Tikal used Río Azul to secure an important trade route to the Caribbean Sea and challenge Calakmul , its great rival. The city was largely abandoned in the 6th century but saw

198-472: A 25 kilometers (16 mi) radius of the site core and including some satellite sites, peak population is estimated at 425,000 with a density of 216 per square kilometer (515 per square mile). These population figures are even more impressive because of the extensive swamplands that were unsuitable for habitation or agriculture . However, some archeologists, such as David Webster, believe these figures to be far too high. There are traces of early agriculture at

297-548: A broken sculpture from the acropolis and early murals at the city. Dynastic rulership among the lowland Maya is most deeply rooted at Tikal. According to later hieroglyphic records, the dynasty was founded by Yax Ehb Xook, perhaps in the 1st century AD. At the beginning of the Early Classic, power in the Maya region was concentrated at Tikal and Calakmul, in the core of the Maya heartland. Tikal may have benefited from

396-506: A filming location for the fictional moon Yavin 4 in the first Star Wars film, which premiered in 1977. Temple I at Tikal was featured on the reverse of the 50 centavo banknote . Eon Productions used the site for the James Bond film Moonraker . Tikal is now a major tourist attraction surrounded by its own national park. A site museum has been built at Tikal; it was completed in 1964. Tikal has been partially restored by

495-505: A frontier fortress. During the site's Late Classic resurgence the rural population density in the once-peripheral BA-20 group reached approximately 300/km (777/square mile). Between AD 692 and 830 the total population at Río Azul once again peaked at around 3500, with 2500 of these in the BA-20 zone. An individual nicknamed Six Sky by archaeologists was a prominent ruler of Río Azul in the early 5th century AD. It has been speculated that Six Sky

594-526: A gradient that channelled rainfall into a system of canals that fed the reservoirs. The residential area of Tikal covers an estimated 60 square kilometers (23 sq mi), much of which has not yet been cleared, mapped, or excavated. The 16 square kilometers (6.2 sq mi) area around the site core has been intensively mapped; it may have enclosed an area of some 125 square kilometers (48 sq mi) (see below). A huge set of earthworks discovered by Dennis E. Puleston and Donald Callender in

693-434: A long career as a general at Tikal before becoming co-ruler and 19th in the dynastic sequence. The Lady of Tikal herself seems not have been counted in the dynastic numbering. It appears she was later paired with lord "Bird Claw", who is presumed to be the otherwise unknown 20th ruler. In the mid 6th century, Caracol seems to have allied with Calakmul and defeated Tikal, closing the Early Classic. The "Tikal hiatus" refers to

792-501: A number of elite tombs were plundered by looters. The looters dug large trenches cutting through the most important temples; at the height of the looting in the late 1970s as many as 80 workers were employed, funded by a wealthy private collector. Archaeologist Ian Graham travelled to Río Azul in 1981 to follow up rumours of the looting and document the damage; as a result of his survey the Guatemalan government stationed custodians at

891-427: A period between the late 6th to late 7th century where there was a lapse in the writing of inscriptions and large-scale construction at Tikal. In the latter half of the 6th century AD, a serious crisis befell the city, with no new stelae being erected and with widespread deliberate mutilation of public sculpture. This hiatus in activity at Tikal was long unexplained until later epigraphic decipherments identified that

990-487: A period spanning a few centuries from the Late Preclassic to the Early Classic periods. Watery imagery is prominent in the royal tombs, linked to the descent of the deceased's soul into the underworld. Tomb 1 was inserted into Structure C-1. Although it was looted it contains fine examples of elaborate Early Classic murals and includes a Long Count date of 8.19.1.9.13, equivalent to a date in September 417. The walls of

1089-469: A pronounced decline in the 6th century, towards the end of the Early Classic, and it may even have been abandoned at this time. This period corresponds to a period of conflict between Tikal and Calakmul during which there is evidence of deliberate destruction at Río Azul. The city was probably overrun by Calakmul due to its alliance with Tikal and its influence over the trade route to the Caribbean. The site

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1188-530: A resurgence in the Late Classic (c. AD 600–900), probably as a result of repopulation by Kinal . The ruins are situated immediately southeast of the Río Azul ("Blue River") upon a low ridge in the extreme northeast of the department of Petén. Río Azul is bounded on the eastern side by interconnected linear structures and by swamps. The southern boundary is formed by an artificially modified gully. The site

1287-518: A trade link to the Caribbean. Although the new rulers of Tikal were foreign, their descendants were rapidly Mayanized. Tikal became the key ally and trading partner of Teotihuacan in the Maya lowlands. After being conquered by Teotihuacan, Tikal rapidly dominated the northern and eastern Peten. Uaxactun, together with smaller towns in the region, were absorbed into Tikal's kingdom. Other sites, such as Bejucal and Motul de San José near Lake Petén Itzá became vassals of their more powerful neighbor to

1386-403: Is 1.1 metres (3.6 ft) wide and 0.6 metres (2.0 ft) thick. It faces west and is sculpted on three faces. The stela still has traces of red paint. Stela 3 was already badly damaged when it was discovered in 1983. Although no hieroglyphic text survives on the monument, the position on the monument of a figure with the feet pointing to the left is typical of Early Classic monuments. Stela 4

1485-466: Is 1.2 metres (3.9 ft) wide and 0.6 metres (2.0 ft) thick and is sculpted on all four faces. It has traces of red and green pigments. The monument was dedicated in AD 690 and mentions the birth of a ruler of Río Azul in 661. Stela 3 dates to the Early Classic and was associated with Structure F1. It measures 3.2 metres (10 ft) high, with 2.3 metres (7.5 ft) of this above ground. The monument

1584-638: Is 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) to the north of the Late Classic ruins of Kinal, 20 kilometres (12 mi) west of the Early to Late Classic ruins of La Milpa , and 60 kilometres (37 mi) northeast of Tikal. Río Azul's location ensured that it controlled a trade route along a tributary of the Hondo River , which was an important route to the Caribbean Sea . The city reached its maximum population during between AD 390 and 540, when it had about 3500 inhabitants. The ruling elite lived in palace complexes within

1683-759: Is even a building which seemed to have been a jail, originally with wooden bars across the windows and doors. There are also seven courts for playing the Mesoamerican ballgame , including a set of 3 in the Seven Temples Plaza, a unique feature in Mesoamerica. The limestone used for construction was local and quarried on-site. The depressions formed by the extraction of stone for building were plastered to waterproof them and were used as reservoirs , together with some waterproofed natural depressions. The main plazas were surfaced with stucco and laid at

1782-467: Is mentioned in an inscription at Río Azul dated to AD 393, during the reign of king Yax Nuun Ayiin I at Tikal. The military costume of Yax Nuun Ayiin I depicted on monuments at both Tikal and Río Azul, combined with a number of hieroglyphic texts, links the Tikal king with the political events at Río Azul at this time. Tikal's dominance over Río Azul at this time would have secured an important trade route to

1881-524: Is not much evidence from Tikal that the city was directly affected by the endemic warfare that afflicted parts of the Maya region during the Terminal Classic, although an influx of refugees from the Petexbatún region may have exacerbated problems resulting from the already stretched environmental resources. In the latter half of the 9th century, there was an attempt to revive royal power at

1980-406: Is sculpted on three sides and has traces of red paint. Stela 2 dates to the Late Classic and includes a hieroglyphic text that mentions an elite visitor from La Milpa, at a time when Río Azul was long past its peak. It was found associated with Structure B-XI and faces south. It measures 3.3 metres (11 ft) high including the buried portion, which measures 0.6 metres (2.0 ft). The monument

2079-492: Is still utilized as legal evidence, preventing the sale of looted and illegally and illicitly obtained art and artifacts. Graham was, for many years, involved as a consultant and witness in criminal cases of looted art, including important cases of artifact repatriation. In 1968 Graham founded the Corpus of Maya Hieroglyphics Program at Harvard University’s Peabody Museum , joining the museum fully in 1970. In 1981, he became

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2178-610: Is the ruin of an ancient city, which was likely to have been called Yax Mutal , found in a rainforest in Guatemala . It is one of the largest archeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization . It is located in the archeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala . Situated in Petén Department , the site is part of Guatemala's Tikal National Park and in 1979 it

2277-589: The Morning Post . Graham went to Trinity College, Cambridge in 1942 as an undergraduate in physics, but his studies were put on hold the following year when he left to enlist in the Royal Navy in which he served for the remainder of World War II , largely working in radar research and development. After the war his studies were resumed at Trinity College, Dublin from where he completed his bachelor's degree in 1951. Graham’s first research position

2376-638: The Peabody Museum of Harvard University . Among his related works is a biography of an early predecessor, the 19th-century British Maya explorer Alfred Maudslay . Ian Graham was born 1923 in Campsea Ashe , a village in the East Anglia county of Suffolk , England . His father was Lord Alastair Graham, the youngest son of Douglas Graham, 5th Duke of Montrose . His family also includes relatives in publishing, specifically associated with

2475-409: The 120 square kilometers (46 sq mi) area falling within the earthwork defenses of the hinterland, the peak population is estimated at 517 per square kilometer (1340 per square mile). In an area within a 12 kilometers (7.5 mi) radius of the site core, peak population is estimated at 120,000; population density is estimated at 265 per square kilometer (689 per square mile). In a region within

2574-466: The 1880s. In 1951, a small airstrip was built at the ruins, which previously could only be reached by several days' travel through the jungle on foot or mule . In 1956 the Tikal project began to map the city on a scale not previously seen in the Maya area. From 1956 through 1970, major archeological excavations were carried out by the University of Pennsylvania Tikal Project. They mapped much of

2673-413: The 1960s rings Tikal with a 6-meter (20 ft) wide trench behind a rampart . Recently, a project exploring the defensive earthworks has shown that the scale of the earthworks is highly variable and that in many places it is inconsequential as a defensive feature. In addition, some parts of the earthwork were integrated into a canal system. The earthwork of Tikal varies significantly in coverage from what

2772-462: The 9th century AD the stela had been enclosed within a shrine; the shrine was half filled with broken pottery around AD 850; this was symptomatic of a calamitous regional event that quickly eliminated elite Maya culture in the region. Stela 1 faces west and has a total height of 5.4 metres (18 ft) including the 0.9 metres (3.0 ft) buried portion of the shaft; it measures 1.3 metres (4.3 ft) wide by 0.6 metres (2.0 ft) thick. The monument

2871-462: The Caribbean and would have challenged Calakmul , Tikal's great rival, which would have used the Hondo river for its own route to the sea. This incursion into Calakmul's sphere of influence provoked a period of fierce rivalry between the two powers that ultimately led to the downfall of Río Azul. During the Early Classic, the nearby site of La Milpa was probably subject to Río Azul. The city underwent

2970-583: The Mutal emblem glyph, with Tikal apparently lacking the authority or the power to crush these bids for independence. In 849, Jewel Kʼawiil is mentioned on a stela at Seibal as visiting that city as the Divine Lord of Tikal but he is not recorded elsewhere and Tikal's once-great power was little more than a memory. The sites of Ixlu and Jimbal had by now inherited the once exclusive Mutal emblem glyph . As Tikal and its hinterland reached peak population,

3069-553: The Río Azul Emblem glyph . The corpse of the deceased was positioned in the centre of the tomb with glyphs for each of the cardinal directions painted upon the corresponding walls, thus positioning him at the centre of the world. Tomb 19 was found intact; it contained fine textiles and Teotihuacan-influenced ceramics, including tripod cylinder vessels of a type common on the Gulf Coast and at Teotihuacan itself. Some of

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3168-529: The Tikal hiatus has served as a marker by which archeologists commonly subdivide the Classic period of Mesoamerican chronology into the Early and Late Classic. In 629, Tikal founded Dos Pilas , some 110 kilometers (68 mi) to the southwest, as a military outpost in order to control trade along the course of the Pasión River . Bʼalaj Chan Kʼawiil was installed on the throne of the new outpost at

3267-493: The Tikal park include gigantic Kapok tree ( Ceiba pentandra ) the sacred tree of the Maya; tropical cedar ( Cedrela odorata ), and Honduras mahogany ( Swietenia macrophylla ). Regarding the fauna, agoutis , white-nosed coatis , gray foxes , Geoffroy's spider monkeys , howler monkeys , harpy eagles , falcons , ocellated turkeys , guans , toucans , green parrots and leafcutter ants can be seen there regularly. Jaguars , ocelots , and cougars are also said to roam in

3366-603: The University of Pennsylvania and the government of Guatemala. It was one of the largest of the Classic period Maya cities and was one of the largest cities in the Americas . The architecture of the ancient city is built from limestone and includes the remains of temples that tower over 70 meters (230 ft) high, large royal palaces, in addition to a number of smaller pyramids , palaces, residences, administrative buildings, platforms and inscribed stone monuments. There

3465-477: The age of four, in 635. When he was older, for many years he served as a loyal vassal fighting for his brother, the king of Tikal. Roughly twenty years later, Dos Pilas was attacked by Calakmul and was soundly defeated. Bʼalaj Chan Kʼawiil was captured by the king of Calakmul but, instead of being sacrificed, he was re-instated on his throne as a vassal of his former enemy. He attacked Tikal in 657, forcing Nuun Ujol Chaak , then king of Tikal, to temporarily abandon

3564-581: The ancient city as Yax Mutal or Yax Mutul , meaning "First Mutal". Tikal may have come to have been called this because Dos Pilas also came to use the same emblem glyph; the rulers of the city presumably wanted to distinguish themselves as the first city to bear the name. The kingdom as a whole was simply called Mutul , which is the reading of the "hair bundle" emblem glyph seen in the accompanying photo. Its precise meaning remains obscure. The closest large modern settlements are Flores and Santa Elena , approximately 64 kilometers (40 mi) by road to

3663-456: The area suffered deforestation, soil erosion and nutrient loss followed by a rapid decline in population levels. Recent analysis also indicates that the city's freshwater sources became highly contaminated with mercury , phosphate and cyanobacteria leading to the accumulation of toxins. Tikal and its immediate surroundings seem to have lost most of their population between 830 and 950 and central authority seems to have collapsed rapidly. There

3762-407: The area, including Uaxactun, where he became king, but did not take the throne of Tikal for himself. Within a year, the son of Spearthrower Owl by the name of Yax Nuun Ahiin I (First Crocodile) had been installed as the fifteenth king of Tikal while he was still a boy, being enthroned on 13 September 379. He reigned for 47 years as king of Tikal, and remained a vassal of Siyaj Kʼakʼ for as long as

3861-586: The auspices of the Instituto de Antropología e Historia and was the first protected area in Guatemala. The ruins lie among the tropical rainforests of northern Guatemala that formed the cradle of lowland Maya civilization. The city itself was located among abundant fertile upland soils, and may have dominated a natural east–west trade route across the Yucatán Peninsula . Conspicuous trees at

3960-473: The ceramic vessels were found to contain traces of cacao and one of them was decorated with a hieroglyphic text describing its function and naming its owner. The tomb's occupant is believed to have been a native of Teotihuacan. Tomb 23 is believed to have been the tomb of a native of Teotihuacan. Like Tomb 19, it also contained Teotihuacan-style tripod cylinder vessels. A number of ceramic pots have been recovered from Río Azul that were used for cacao . One of

4059-467: The city, its royal palaces were occupied by squatters and simple thatched dwellings were being erected in the city's ceremonial plazas. The squatters blocked some doorways in the rooms they reoccupied in the monumental structures of the site and left rubbish that included a mixture of domestic refuse and non-utilitarian items such as musical instruments. These inhabitants reused the earlier monuments for their own ritual activities, far removed from those of

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4158-491: The city. As early as 200 AD, Teotihuacan had embassies in Tikal. The fourteenth king of Tikal was Chak Tok Ichʼaak (Great Jaguar Paw). Chak Tok Ichʼaak built a palace that was preserved and developed by later rulers until it became the core of the Central Acropolis . Little is known about Chak Tok Ichʼaak except that he was killed on 14 January 378 AD. On the same day, Siyaj Kʼakʼ (Fire Is Born) arrived from

4257-461: The city. Additional fortifications were probably also built to the south. These defenses protected Tikal's core population and agricultural resources, encircling an area of approximately 120 square kilometers (46 sq mi). Recent research suggests that the earthworks served as a water collection system rather than a defensive purpose. In the 5th century, the power of the city reached as far south as Copán , whose founder Kʼinich Yax Kʼukʼ Mo'

4356-567: The city. The first two rulers of Dos Pilas continued to use the Mutal emblem glyph of Tikal, and they probably felt that they had a legitimate claim to the throne of Tikal itself. For some reason, Bʼalaj Chan Kʼawiil was not installed as the new ruler of Tikal; instead he stayed at Dos Pilas. Tikal counterattacked against Dos Pilas in 672, driving Bʼalaj Chan Kʼawiil into an exile that lasted five years. Calakmul tried to encircle Tikal within an area dominated by its allies, such as El Peru, Dos Pilas, and Caracol. In 682, Jasaw Chan Kʼawiil I erected

4455-484: The collapse of the large Preclassic states such as El Mirador . In the Early Classic Tikal rapidly developed into the most dynamic city in the Maya region, stimulating the development of other nearby Maya cities . The site, however, was often at war and inscriptions tell of alliances and conflict with other Maya states, including Uaxactun , Caracol , Naranjo and Calakmul . The site was defeated at

4554-455: The commissioner and the governor of Petén , visited it in 1848. Artist Eusebio Lara accompanied them and their account was published in Germany in 1853. Several other expeditions came to further investigate, map, and photograph Tikal in the 19th century (including Alfred P. Maudslay in 1881–82) and the early 20th century. Pioneering archeologists started to clear, map and record the ruins in

4653-452: The course of the causeway just south of Group H. It depicts two bound captives and dates to the Late Classic. Ian Graham Ian James Alastair Graham OBE (12 November 1923 – 1 August 2017) was a British Mayanist whose explorations of Maya ruins in the jungles of Mexico , Guatemala , and Belize helped establish the Corpus of Maya Hieroglyphic Inscriptions published by

4752-484: The crops ripened, which severely threatened the inhabitants of the city. Population estimates for Tikal vary from 10,000 to as high as 90,000 inhabitants. The population of Tikal began a continuous curve of growth starting in the Preclassic Period (approximately 2000 BC – AD 200), with a peak in the Late Classic with the population growing rapidly from AD 700 through to 830, followed by a sharp decline. For

4851-452: The defeat of Tikal having a lasting impact upon the city. Tikal was not sacked but its power and influence were broken. After its great victory, Caracol grew rapidly and some of Tikal's population may have been forcibly relocated there. During the hiatus period, at least one ruler of Tikal took refuge with Janaabʼ Pakal of Palenque , another of Calakmul's victims. Calakmul itself thrived during Tikal's long hiatus period. The beginning of

4950-440: The densest concentration of substantial structures is clustered within the central 0.5 square kilometres (0.19 sq mi) of the site core; the tallest temple stands 15 metres (49 ft) high. The principal architecture was erected under the supervision of the dynasty installed by Tikal and its Teotihuacan allies. Teotihuacan-influences architectural elements include the talud-tablero style. The main architectural groups of

5049-444: The end of the Early Classic by Caracol, which rose to take Tikal's place as the paramount center in the southern Maya lowlands. The earlier part of the Early Classic saw hostilities between Tikal and its neighbor Uaxactun, with Uaxactun recording the capture of prisoners from Tikal. There appears to have been a breakdown in the male succession by AD 317, when Lady Unen Bahlam conducted a Kʼatun-ending ceremony, apparently as queen of

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5148-608: The end. In 1525, the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés passed within a few kilometers of the ruins of Tikal but did not mention them in his letters. After Spanish friar Andrés de Avendaño became lost in the Petén forests in early 1696 he described a ruin that may well have been Tikal. As is often the case with huge ancient ruins, knowledge of the site was never completely lost in the region. It seems that local people never forgot about Tikal and they guided Guatemalan expeditions to

5247-421: The first dated monument at Tikal in 120 years and claimed the title of kaloomteʼ , so ending the hiatus. He initiated a program of new construction and turned the tables on Calakmul when, in 695, he captured the enemy noble and threw the enemy state into a long decline from which it never fully recovered. After this, Calakmul never again erected a monument celebrating a military victory. By the 7th century, there

5346-537: The fortunes of Copán. In the 8th century, the rulers of Tikal collected monuments from across the city and erected them in front of the North Acropolis. By the late 8th century and early 9th century, activity at Tikal slowed. Impressive architecture was still built but few hieroglyphic inscriptions refer to later rulers. By the 9th century, the crisis of the Classic Maya collapse was sweeping across

5445-491: The great metropolis of Teotihuacan in the distant Valley of Mexico . There is evidence that one of Tikal's great ruling dynasties was founded by conquerors from Teotihuacan in the 4th century AD. Following the end of the Late Classic Period, no new major monuments were built at Tikal and there is evidence that elite palaces were burned. These events were coupled with a gradual population decline, culminating with

5544-410: The impressive architecture visible today. In 738, Quiriguá, a vassal of Copán, Tikal's key ally in the south, switched allegiance to Calakmul, defeated Copán and gained its own independence. It appears that this was a conscious effort on the part of Calakmul to bring about the collapse of Tikal's southern allies. This upset the balance of power in the southern Maya area and lead to a steady decline in

5643-424: The last of the city's major pyramids , and the erection of monuments to mark the 19th Kʼatun in 810. The beginning of the 10th Bakʼtun in 830 passed uncelebrated, and marks the beginning of a 60-year hiatus, probably resulting from the collapse of central control in the city. During this hiatus, satellite sites traditionally under Tikal's control began to erect their own monuments featuring local rulers and using

5742-430: The latter lived. It seems likely that Yax Nuun Ayiin I took a wife from the preexisting, defeated, Tikal dynasty and thus legitimized the right to rule of his son, Siyaj Chan Kʼawiil II. Río Azul , a small site 100 kilometers (62 mi) northeast of Tikal, was conquered by the latter during the reign of Yax Nuun Ayiin I. The site became an outpost of Tikal, shielding it from hostile cities further north, and also became

5841-666: The many connections this led to allowed him to take up photography semi-professionally and embark on extensive travels. These activities gave rise eventually to two books illustrated with his photographs. A visit to Mexico in 1958 initiated his long involvement with Maya archaeology . Graham's field work was responsible for recording and cataloguing the single largest collection of Maya sculpture, carving and monumental artwork. His photography and drawings at such sites as Coba , Naranjo , Piedras Negras , Seibal , Tonina , Uaxactun , and Yaxchilan , created an original, highly detailed record of these (and other) sites; documentation that

5940-417: The mapped area, archaeologists recorded 275 structures and 30 chultunob . Almost all of the architecture within the group is domestic in nature and the likely food-storage function of the chultunob supports the interpretation of the group as principally residential in nature. Stela 1 was associated with Structure A-3. It is inscribed with a date equivalent to AD 392 and mentions one of Río Azul's kings. By

6039-474: The much-diminished city of Tikal, as evidenced by a stela erected in the Great Plaza by Jasaw Chan Kʼawiil II in 869. This was the last monument erected at Tikal before the city finally fell into silence. The former satellites of Tikal, such as Jimbal and Uaxactun, did not last much longer, erecting their final monuments in 889. By the end of the 9th century the vast majority of Tikal's population had deserted

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6138-400: The north. By the middle of the 5th century Tikal had a core territory of at least 25 kilometers (16 mi) in every direction. Around the 5th century, an impressive system of fortifications consisting of ditches and earthworks was built along the northern periphery of Tikal's hinterland, joining up with the natural defenses provided by large areas of swampland lying to the east and west of

6237-525: The outer walls showing human figures against a scrollwork background, painted in yellow, black, pink and red. In the 1st century AD, rich burials first appeared and Tikal underwent a political and cultural florescence as its giant northern neighbors declined. At the end of the Late Preclassic, the Izapan style art and architecture from the Pacific Coast began to influence Tikal, as demonstrated by

6336-415: The park. Tikal had no water other than what was collected from rainwater and stored in ten reservoirs. Archeologists working in Tikal during the 20th century refurbished one of these ancient reservoirs to store water for their own use. The average annual rainfall at Tikal is 1,945 millimeters (76.6 in). However, the arrival of rain was often unpredictable, and long periods of drought could occur before

6435-535: The period was prompted by Tikal's comprehensive defeat at the hands of Calakmul and the Caracol polity in AD 562, a defeat that seems to have resulted in the capture and sacrifice of the king of Tikal. The badly eroded Altar 21 at Caracol described how Tikal suffered this disastrous defeat in a major war in April 562. It seems that Caracol was an ally of Calakmul in the wider conflict between that city and Tikal, with

6534-463: The population began to concentrate on the ridge, and this continued into the Early Classic period. In the late 4th century AD Río Azul came to be dominated by the city of Tikal . Scenes depicting the sacrifice of at least eight nobles are sculpted on a series of three circular altars dated to AD 385; this has been interpreted as the sacrifice of the local elite after a takeover by Tikal and its Teotihuacano allies. The Teotihuacan warlord Siyaj K'ak'

6633-597: The pots includes hieroglyphs identifying it specifically as a "cacao pot", and cacao residue has been found in a number of other vessels. Finds at Río Azul include a screw-top chocolate pot. A looted jade mask has been found to be inscribed with hieroglyphs naming the same king as is mentioned on Stela 1 together with a truncated version of the Río Azul emblem glyph. 17°46′44.7″N 89°16′48.0″W  /  17.779083°N 89.280000°W  / 17.779083; -89.280000 Tikal Tikal ( / t i ˈ k ɑː l / ; Tik'al in modern Mayan orthography)

6732-401: The region, with populations plummeting and city after city falling into silence. Increasingly endemic warfare in the Maya region caused Tikal's supporting population to heavily concentrate close to the city itself, accelerating the use of intensive agriculture and the corresponding environmental decline . Construction continued at the beginning of the century, with the erection of Temple 3,

6831-417: The royal dynasty that had erected them. Some monuments were vandalized and some were moved to new locations. Before its final abandonment all respect for the old rulers had disappeared, with the tombs of the North Acropolis being explored for jade and the easier-to-find tombs were looted. After 950, Tikal was all but deserted, although a remnant population may have survived in perishable huts interspersed among

6930-519: The ruins in the 1850s. Some second- or third-hand accounts of Tikal appeared in print starting in the 17th century, continuing through the writings of John Lloyd Stephens in the early 19th century (Stephens and his illustrator Frederick Catherwood heard rumors of a lost city, with white building tops towering above the jungle, during their 1839–40 travels in the region). Because of the site's remoteness from modern towns, however, no explorers visited Tikal until Modesto Méndez and Ambrosio Tut, respectively

7029-507: The ruins. Even these final inhabitants abandoned the city in the 10th or 11th centuries and the rainforest claimed the ruins for the next thousand years. Some of Tikal's population may have migrated to the Peten Lakes region, which remained heavily populated in spite of a plunge in population levels in the first half of the 9th century. The most likely cause of collapse at Tikal is |overpopulation and agrarian failure. The fall of Tikal

7128-505: The ruler of Teotihuacan. These recorded events strongly suggest that Siyaj Kʼakʼ led a Teotihuacan invasion that defeated the native Tikal king, who was captured and immediately executed. Siyaj Kʼakʼ appears to have been aided by a powerful political faction at Tikal itself; roughly at the time of the conquest, a group of Teotihuacan natives were apparently residing near the Lost World complex. He also exerted control over other cities in

7227-483: The same person. His tomb had Teotihuacan characteristics and he was depicted in later portraits dressed in the warrior garb of Teotihuacan. Hieroglyphic texts refer to him as "Lord of the West", much like Siyaj Kʼakʼ. At the same time, in late 426, Copán founded the nearby site of Quiriguá , possibly sponsored by Tikal itself. The founding of these two centers may have been part of an effort to impose Tikal's authority upon

7326-502: The site and excavated and restored many of the structures. Excavations directed by Edwin M. Shook and later by William Coe of the university investigated the North Acropolis and the Central Plaza from 1957 to 1969. The Tikal Project recorded over 200 monuments at the site. In 1979, the Guatemalan government began a further archeological project at Tikal, which continued through to 1984. Filmmaker George Lucas used Tikal as

7425-473: The site consists of a series of parallel limestone ridges rising above swampy lowlands. The major architecture of the site is clustered upon areas of higher ground and linked by raised causeways spanning the swamps. The area around Tikal has been declared as the Tikal National Park and the preserved area covers 570 square kilometers (220 sq mi). It was created on 26 May 1955 under

7524-464: The site core were connected by a series of paved plazas and causeways . Minor palaces and residential complexes were scattered amongst the major groups. Río Azul possesses nine major architectural groups in its site core, each including an elite residential complex and its associated funerary pyramids . The city possesses 39 formal courtyards with their associated architectural complexes. Three chultunob (subterranean storage chambers) were found within

7623-414: The site core. Structure A-3 was a large temple. Three inscribed altars dating to the Early Classic were found buried under it; they depicted scenes of human sacrifice. The temple was built during Río Azul's apogee between 390 and 530. The BA-20 Group is situated a few kilometers to the northeast of the site core and includes four platforms dating to the Late Preclassic. The group was already abandoned by

7722-445: The site core; their households consisted of extended families with their servants. The population was concentrated almost entirely within the city with a population density of 2,700 people/km (7,000 people/sq mi). Farmers and labourers made up 31% and 57% of the population respectively and were subject to feudal obligations to their overlords. The unusual highly nucleated population pattern has been attributed to Río Azul's status as

7821-574: The site dating as far back as 1000 BC, in the Middle Preclassic. A cache of Mamon ceramics dating from about 700-400 BC were found in a sealed chultun , a subterranean bottle-shaped chamber. Major construction at Tikal was already taking place in the Late Preclassic period, first appearing around 400–300 BC, including the building of major pyramids and platforms, although the city was still dwarfed by sites further north such as El Mirador and Nakbe . At this time, Tikal participated in

7920-483: The site's abandonment by the end of the 10th century. Tikal is the best understood of any of the large lowland Maya cities, with a long dynastic ruler list, the discovery of the tombs of many of the rulers on this list and the investigation of their monuments , temples and palaces. The name Tikal may be derived from ti ak'al in the Yucatec Maya language ; it is said to be a relatively modern name meaning "at

8019-402: The site. Richard Adams started formal investigations of Río Azul in 1983, beginning the five-year Río Azul Project, which finished in 1987. The project investigated and documented more than 125 looters' trenches and tunnels. The site covers an area of approximately 1.3 square kilometres (0.50 sq mi) and includes approximately 729 major structures dating from the 5th to 6th centuries AD;

8118-476: The southeast). These broad causeways were built of packed and plastered limestone and have been named after early explorers and archeologists; the Maler , Maudslay , Tozzer and Méndez causeways. They assisted the passage of everyday traffic during the rain season and also served as dams. The Maler Causeway runs north from behind Temple I to Group H. A large bas-relief is carved onto limestone bedrock upon

8217-441: The southeastern portion of the Maya region. The interaction between these sites and Tikal was intense over the next three centuries. A long-running rivalry between Tikal and Calakmul began in the 6th century, with each of the two cities forming its own network of mutually hostile alliances arrayed against each other in what has been likened to a long-running war between two Maya superpowers. The kings of these two capitals adopted

8316-652: The southwest. Tikal is approximately 303 kilometers (188 mi) north of Guatemala City . It is 19 kilometers (12 mi) south of the contemporary Maya city of Uaxactun and 30 kilometers (19 mi) northwest of Yaxha . The city was located 100 kilometers (62 mi) southeast of its great Classic Period rival, Calakmul , and 85 kilometers (53 mi) northwest of Calakmul's ally Caracol , now in Belize . The city has been completely mapped and covered an area greater than 16 square kilometers (6.2 sq mi) that included about 3,000 structures. The topography of

8415-502: The time Río Azul reached its maximum extent; no Early Classic remains have been found in the vicinity of BA-20. The group was reinhabited during the Late Classic, with the general repopulation of Río Azul and the group is estimated to have housed some 2500 people between the AD 692 and 830. The total area covered by the group is estimated to be 7 to 8 square kilometres (2.7 to 3.1 sq mi), of which mapping and test excavations covered just 0.8 square kilometres (0.31 sq mi). In

8514-425: The title kaloomteʼ , a term that has not been precisely translated but that implies something akin to " high king ". The early 6th century saw another queen ruling the city, known only as the " Lady of Tikal ", who was very likely a daughter of Chak Tok Ichʼaak II. She seems never to have ruled in her own right, rather being partnered with male co-rulers. The first of these was Kaloomteʼ Bʼalam, who seems to have had

8613-454: The tomb were coated with plaster, painted a red hematite pigment and decorated with hieroglyphs. The hieroglyphic text in the tomb proclaimed the royal Tikal ancestry of its occupant. As the occupant's name is unknown, they are currently referred to with the designation " Ruler X ". Tomb 12 is located under Structure A-3. It has walls painted with Maya script that includes mention of a person called Six Sky, his death or entombment in 450 and

8712-462: The waterhole". The name was apparently applied to one of the site's ancient reservoirs by hunters and travelers in the region. It has alternatively been interpreted as meaning "the place of the voices" in the Itza Maya language . Tikal, however, is not the ancient name for the site but rather the name adopted shortly after its discovery in the 1840s. Hieroglyphic inscriptions at the ruins refer to

8811-416: The west, having passed through El Peru , a site to the west of Tikal, on 8 January. On Stela 31 he is named as "Lord of the West". Siyaj Kʼakʼ was probably a foreign general serving a figure represented by a non-Maya hieroglyph of a spearthrower combined with an owl, a glyph that is well known from the great metropolis of Teotihuacan in the distant Valley of Mexico. Spearthrower Owl may even have been

8910-462: The widespread Chikanel culture that dominated the Central and Northern Maya areas at this time – a region that included the entire Yucatán Peninsula including northern and eastern Guatemala and all of Belize. Two temples dating to Late Chikanel times had masonry-walled superstructures that may have been corbel-vaulted , although this has not been proven. One of these had elaborate paintings on

9009-706: Was a blow to the heart of Classic Maya civilization , the city having been at the forefront of courtly life, art and architecture for over a thousand years, with an ancient ruling dynasty. However, new research regarding paleoenvironmental proxies from the Tikal reservoir system suggests that a meteorological drought may have led to the abandonment of Tikal, fouling some reservoirs near the temple and palace with algae blooms , while other reservoirs remained drinkable. Buildings were painted with mercury -bearing cinnabar , which were washed off by rain and polluted some reservoirs. Works of Kohler and colleagues showed that this city reached an unsustainable level of inequalities at

9108-541: Was a three-year project funded by the Nuffield Foundation and working in the small Scientific Department of The National Gallery in London. The objective of this was to study the penetration and swelling of paint films and varnishes by solvents. Following the successful completion of the project, in 1954 he felt he needed work with a broader scope. During the three years he had enjoyed a vivid social life and

9207-541: Was clearly connected with Tikal. Copán itself was not in an ethnically Maya region and the founding of the Copán dynasty probably involved the direct intervention of Tikal. Kʼinich Yax Kukʼ Moʼ arrived in Copán in December 426, and bone analysis of his remains shows that he passed his childhood and youth at Tikal. An individual known as Ajaw Kʼukʼ Mo' (lord Kʼukʼ Moʼ) is referred to in an early text at Tikal and may well be

9306-543: Was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site . Tikal was the capital of a conquest state that became one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient Maya. Though monumental architecture at the site dates back as far as the 4th century BC, Tikal reached its apogee during the Classic Period , c. 200 to 900. During this time, the city dominated much of the Maya region politically, economically, and militarily, while interacting with areas throughout Mesoamerica such as

9405-615: Was dedicated around AD 840. This monument has been associated with the Puuc Maya by investigator Richard E. W. Adams. The site is known for a number of ornate tombs, some of which are corbel-vaulted. The tombs were excavated out of the limestone bedrock and the walls were painted red and black. A number of tomb chambers were uncovered under Structure A-3 by looters who removed most of the tomb contents. The chamber walls were painted with hieroglyphic texts. More than thirty tombs have been investigated by archaeologists at Río Azul, all dated to

9504-517: Was no active Teotihuacan presence at any Maya site and the center of Teotihuacan had been razed by 700. Even after this, formal war attire illustrated on monuments was Teotihuacan style. Jasaw Chan Kʼawiil I and his heir Yikʼin Chan Kʼawiil continued hostilities against Calakmul and its allies and imposed firm regional control over the area around Tikal, extending as far as the territory around Lake Petén Itzá. These two rulers were responsible for much of

9603-526: Was originally proposed and it is much more complex and multifaceted than originally thought. By the Late Classic, a network of sacbeob (causeways) linked various parts of the city, running for several kilometers through its urban core. These linked the Great Plaza with Temple 4 (located about 750 meters (2,460 feet ) to the west) and the Temple of the Inscriptions (about 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) to

9702-413: Was resettled during the Late Classic; this was probably overseen by Kinal. The population was concentrated in the residential areas and there was little new construction. Ceramic finds at Río Azul demonstrate that Maya trade routes still ran through the city in the 9th century, however the city was completely abandoned by AD 880. The ruins were discovered in 1962 by Trinidad Pech; soon after their discovery

9801-474: Was the son of Siyaj Chan K'awiil II , a king of Tikal. Río Azul was first settled in the Middle Preclassic (c. 1000–350 BC) around 900 BC and underwent a period of notable expansion during the Late Preclassic, at which time a number of monumental temples were built. These have been dated to around 500 BC. In the Preclassic the population was spread out along the east bank of the river; in the Late Preclassic

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