Maya Civilization
7 reportsThe documented context of Maya Civilization includes political or religious institutions; chronology and regional variation; and settlement and urban organization. For settlement and urban organization, the primary record comes from excavated contexts, with inscriptions or archives providing a separate test; the account does not overlook that surviving evidence is uneven and later narratives can oversimplify social diversity.
Maya Household Gardens Reveal Ancient Strategies for Food and Water
Archaeologists analyzing soils and settlement patterns in the Northern Maya Lowlands have identified evidence that ancient Maya households organized their domestic plots to support agriculture and manage rainwater, offering new insight into daily life beyond monumental centers
2,800-Year-Old Prone Burial With Sea Turtle Vessel Found in El Salvador
Archaeologists excavating in Antiguo Cuscatlán, El Salvador, have uncovered a 2,800-year-old burial featuring a face-down skeleton and a ceramic vessel shaped like a sea turtle, offering new evidence for mortuary practices in pre-Maya Mesoamerica
Earliest Maya Calendar Writing Identified at Calakmul Mural
Archaeologists have reconstructed a deteriorated mural from Calakmul, Mexico, revealing the earliest known calendrical inscription at the site. The find offers new evidence for early Maya writing traditions and ritual practice in the Late Preclassic period.
Ancient Human Remains and Maya Ceramics Found in Cenote Yaakun
Archaeologists have begun a research and conservation project at Cenote Yaakun near Playa del Carmen after the discovery of a possible young adult woman's skeleton and a cluster of Maya ceramics in a deep underwater context
Survey Reveals Monumental Maya City at El Yesal in Campeche
Archaeologists have mapped and documented El Yesal, a major Maya settlement in Mexico's Balam kú Biosphere Reserve, using field survey and excavation to clarify its origins, architecture, and occupation history
Early Maya Mural at Calakmul Depicts Mythical Hero Juun Ajaw
A mural from Structure II at Calakmul, Mexico, has been identified as one of the earliest known depictions of the Maya figure Juun Ajaw. Researchers used digital reconstruction to analyze the mural's iconography and its architectural context
Eighth-Century Maya Astronomer's Name Found at San Bartolo-Xultun
Researchers have identified the name of a Maya mathematician and astronomer in wall inscriptions at the San Bartolo-Xultun site in Guatemala, revealing new details about scientific activity in the region during the eighth century CE