A recent paper in the journal Science describes investigations by Mayanist Takeshi Inomata and colleagues at Ceibal, a Maya capital site in Guatemala. Those excavations recently revealed the earliest known E-Group in the Maya lowlands, ca 1000 BC.
Excavations at one of three circular structures found on top of Platform A-24 at Ceibal, Guatemala. © Takeshi Inomata
E-Groups are patterned complexes of structures, consisting of a plaza with a pyramid on the west side and a rectangular platform on the east, with three smaller structures perched on top of the platform. They are common throughout the Maya world, and before this discovery at Ceibal, the earliest one known was at the Olmec site of La Venta, some 200-300 years later.
Nicoletta Maestri, contributing writer to the Archaeology pages here at About, has assembled a photo essay for us, describing the work at Ceibal, and the implications of the E-Group complex.
- Monumental Architecture at Ceibal (Nico's photo essay)
- Ceibal (Guatemala)
- E-Groups
Inomata T, Triadan D, Aoyama K, Castillo V, and Yonenobu H. 2013. Early Ceremonial Constructions at Ceibal, Guatemala, and the Origins of Lowland Maya Civilization. Science 340:467-471.
Comments