Aguada Fénix, in Tabasco near Mexico’s southeastern border, contains a massive Early Preclassic monument reported in 2020. The earthwork measures nearly a mile long, a quarter-mile wide, and rises 30 to 50 feet; it dates to 1,000 BCE. New excavation shows the monument functioned as a cosmogram, a model of the order of the universe known from other Maya sites.
Researchers first identified features with lidar in 2017, after earlier lidar work at Ceibal in 2015. The excavation revealed a cruciform pit that held a cache of ceremonial objects, including jade axes and carved ornaments that represent a crocodile, a bird, and a woman giving birth. Small piles of blue, green, and yellowish pigment were placed to match the cardinal directions. Radiocarbon dating and analysis of ceramic sherds date the cache to about 900–845 BCE.
Fieldwork also found causeways, sunken corridors, canals and a dam that divert water from a nearby laguna; some causeways extend as far as six miles. The team has found no evidence of rule by a single powerful king. Inomata suggests leadership was intellectual and collaborative, with people choosing to work together on the cosmogram.
Difficult words
- significant — Important or meaningful in a way.
- excavation — The process of digging to find things.
- artifacts — Objects made by people in the past.
- ceremonial — Related to a ceremony or ritual.
- indicate — To show something or suggest it.
- dimensions — Measurements of size or extent.
- cooperation — Working together toward a goal.
- achievements — Something completed successfully.
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- How do you think this discovery affects our understanding of early civilizations?
- Why is cooperation important in building large projects?
- What other archaeological sites are you curious about?
