- According to archaeologists, the finding of a burning incident from around the early ninth century signifies a pivotal moment in Maya governance.
- The discovery is a scarce archaeological identification of a significant historical watershed moment.
- The burning of Mayan artifacts, with some dating back a hundred years or more at the time, probably drew large crowds as a publicly celebrated occasion.
Archaeologists discovered clues to a fire in Guatemala from between 733 and 881 AD that they say represents a key turning point in
Maya
guideline—an extremely visible change of direction.
The finding at the Mayan location of Ucanal in Guatemala “signaled a public overthrow of the previous authority”—quite a crucial juncture in the demise of leaders and a significant shift in political influence that isn’t commonly illustrated so distinctly.
archeological
in a study, the authors mention
published
in the journal
Antiquity
.
The incident in question took place at the capital of the K’anwitznal kingdom close to a burial ground. The remains along with their adornments—including a gem-encrusted stone mask, pieces of a greenstone crown, and jade accessories—had been relocated from a
tomb
to a communal burning ground, where flames consumed several of the ancient artifacts for everyone to witness.
This occasion signaled a turning point in the
kingdom
And in the lowlands,” the authors state. “Instead of seeing this fire-event as a concluding chapter for Maya history, we interpret it as a turning point where the K’anwitznal polity transformed itself, leading to an era of prosperity for the city of Ucanal.
The new
leadership
The regime embraced a non-royal figure named Papmalil, with minimal documentation explaining his rise to leadership. “Under Papmalil’s governance, which may have been groundbreaking due to potential foreign roots—he possibly disrupting the sequence of hereditary rulers at the location—the shift in politics had significant repercussions across the southern Maya lowlands.”
Christina Halperin from the University of Montreal, along with her team, indicate that Papmalil seems to have initiated an age of abundance. Following the change in authority, significant building activities took place in both the central ceremonial area and the peripheral residential districts of the city.
The dawn of this new age might have started with significant upheaval.
During the 2022 excavation efforts at a temple-pyramid within a public plaza, the team uncovered signs of a fire incident. The findings indicate that there were no attempts made to safeguard the area.
burial
The team hypothesizes that at least four adults were among those whose remains were burned, suggesting that the flames soared to temperatures exceeding 800°C. Alongside these charred bones, investigators found 1,470 pieces of shattered greenstone artifacts such as pendants, beads, plaques, and mosaics, alongside numerous large blades—evidently all resulting from one singular conflagration. These items’ abundance and craftsmanship imply their origin was within a regal burial site, probably housing several people’s remains.
The team stated that the evidence suggests that the
human bone
And the decorations were previously components of a Late Classic royal burial chamber, with the offering being associated with a fire ceremony marking “the symbolic and actual obliteration of a preceding K’anwitznal dynasty.”
The authors indicate that the incident “seems to have been an act of desecration; it was discarded at the edge of a makeshift.”
wall
Used as a construction site, no efforts were made to shield the broken bones and artifacts from the tomb stones that fell on them as part of the filling material. This probably resulted in quite a “spectacular public event” intended to evoke strong emotions. They noted that this might have strikingly symbolized “the collapse of an old order.”
