Underground Mayan temple or secret hideout? New discovery by archaeologists in Mexico

In the Mexican state of Campeche, archaeologists made an important discovery. During excavations of a Maya ball game court, researchers found an underground structure with painted walls.

Ivan Šprajc, an archaeologist from the Institute of Anthropological and Spatial Studies in Slovenia, who leads the excavations, shared information about the find. According to him, the team uncovered parts of an older building with painted walls. However, only further research will reveal the full form and purpose of this structure.

Šprajc emphasized the importance of this discovery, noting that ball game courts are typically found in large Maya settlements that were centers of regional political organization. The National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico reports that the structure could date back to the early Classic period (200–600 AD) and is covered with a layer of painted stucco.

Prior to the excavations, Šprajc and his colleagues conducted a survey of a large area of the Maya lowlands using lidar technology - a technology that uses laser pulses to create detailed terrain maps. This allowed them to discover several ancient Maya settlements with remnants of residential buildings and temple pyramids.

In 2023, the team found the lost Maya city of Okmtn, where several large pyramids of the Classic period (approximately 200-900 AD) are located. The new discovery is located in a previously unexplored area south of Okmtn.

In addition, archaeologists discovered another site with a square, a 16-meter high pyramid, and a rectangular water reservoir. Sacrificial offerings were found atop the pyramid: ceramic vessels, a ceramic animal foot (possibly a tapir), and a flint knife or spearhead.

Šprajc explained that these sacrificial offerings were left on top of the temple in the late Postclassic period (1250-1524), when the central Maya lowlands were already in political turmoil. However, small groups of people still roamed this area, leaving offerings on the buildings of their ancestors.

These discoveries in Mexico are part of a broader trend in archaeological research in Latin America, which continues to uncover the mysteries of ancient civilizations in the region. Alongside work in Campeche, important findings have also been made in other parts of the continent.

In northwestern Peru, archaeologists discovered the ruins of a 5000-year-old ceremonial temple and human remains beneath a sand dune. The find is located in the Zaña area and is part of the archaeological complex of Los Paredones de la Otra Banda - Las Ánimas.

Source: Livescience