Tikal
Tikal
Guatemala · Petén
In brief
Tikal is one of the major Maya cities in northern Guatemala. Its temples, palaces, inscriptions and excavated neighborhoods document its relationships with other Mesoamerican centers.
What was found?
- 1Painted altar in the Teotihuacán style
The altar has panels painted red, black, and yellow featuring a figure with a feathered headdress. According to researchers, it may be the work of a craftsperson trained at Teotihuacán.
- 2Building group resembling the Ciudadela
Structures resembling a smaller version of Teotihuacán's Ciudadela complex were identified beneath elevations thought to be natural hills. Excavations showed that the similarities also extended to structural details and orientation.
- 3Green obsidian point
A weapon point made of green obsidian was found in an adult burial near the altar. Researchers consider its material and form among the indicators of a connection with Teotihuacán.
- 4Hieroglyphic monuments
Stone sculptures and inscribed surfaces record the city's dynastic history. They make it possible to trace Tikal's relationships with Teotihuacán, Calakmul, and other centers.
What does it point to?
The finds at Tikal show that Maya cities maintained intensive relationships with distant political centers. According to researchers, the foreign architectural layout and painted altar indicate that Teotihuacán's influence may have extended beyond trade to include a direct political presence or control.
What did it teach us?
- It revealed that some elevations thought to be natural hills were actually a buried building complex.
- It showed that Teotihuacán architecture was replicated at Tikal in plan and orientation.
- The new altar strengthened researchers' interpretations concerning a foreign political presence at Tikal.
- Inscriptions made it possible to trace relationships between cities and dynastic history through specific events.
Images
Latest news / selected archive
In 2025, the discovery of an altar bearing painted panels in Teotihuacán style and said to have been built in the late 4th century AD was published.
Record
- Culture
- Maya
- Team / historical
- Edwin Román Ramírez; joint research team from Guatemalan and US institutions
- Coordinates
- 17.2221°, -89.6235°
Sources
Nearby excavations
- Calakmul 100 km
- Palenque 259 km
- Copan 270 km
- Ancient City of Uxmal 349 km
- Joya de Cerén Archaeological Site 378 km
- Chichen Itza 400 km
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- —
- 12.000
From beneath the soil: latest discoveries
- 2,600-year-old mudbrick structure identified beneath the city of Buto in Egypt
The walls of a large mudbrick structure identified through satellite and geophysical surveys were confirmed by a trial excavation. According to the researchers, a layer of sand placed beneath the foundations may have helped protect the structure in the waterlogged ground of the Nile Delta.
Heritage Daily ↗ · Excavation notebook - Celtic woman's grave containing jewelry and animal remains found in Germany
A woman's skeleton, heavy bronze anklets, a sapropelite arm ring, and the remains of a lamb or kid were found in the grave in Bavaria. According to the researchers, placing the animal in the grave as a food offering represents an unusual example of Celtic funerary practices in the region.
Arkeofili ↗ - Cupboard containing personal belongings, childhood amulets and coins found in Pompeii
Grooming items, 38 bronze coins and a necklace made up of at least 24 amulets were found in a cupboard in a house in Pompeii that had remained closed since the eruption in AD 79. The preservation of these objects together provides detailed information about everyday life and personal mementos in Roman times.
Arkeofili ↗ · Excavation notebook - Lead seal of a bishop named Stefan found in Croatia
Excavations on the islet of Lukovac uncovered a document seal bearing the name Stefan and the title of bishop in Latin. According to the researchers, the seal, tentatively dated to the 6th–7th centuries, offers rare evidence of early church administration in a region with limited written sources.
Heritage Daily ↗ - Roman-period sarcophagus of a child buried with toys found in Romania
A wheeled toy horse, a rooster-shaped rattle, jewelry and organic remains were recovered from a sealed child’s sarcophagus dating back approximately 1,800 years in the ancient city of Tomis. The preservation of wooden coffin fragments and the shroud also offers a rare opportunity to study child burials in Roman times.
HeritageDaily ↗ - Roman-period grave found in the seating area of the ancient theater in Gölyazı
A tile-covered grave dating to the 1st century AD and containing cremated human remains was uncovered in the theater of Apollonia ad Rhyndacum. Why the burial took place in the theater despite the city having a separate cemetery remains unknown; the find raises new questions about the use of public spaces.
Arkeofili ↗ - Marble portrait of Antinoos and 13 inscriptions found at Teos
A marble portrait of Antinoos and 13 inscriptions on reused stone blocks were found around the Temple of Roma and Augustus at Teos. The inscriptions shed light on the city’s political and legal relations, while researchers say the portrait and inscription fragments show that the temple was also connected to the cult of Antinoos.
Arkeofili ↗ · Excavation notebook - New prehistoric settlement identified on the shore of the Dardanelles
A newly published study presented Yaylatepe Höyük, identified during surface surveys in 2024, and its pottery spanning the end of the Late Chalcolithic to the beginning of the Late Bronze Age for the first time. According to the researcher, the settlement, which has a visual connection with Asartepe on the opposite shore, contributes to understanding prehistoric coastal connections along the strait.
Arkeoloji Dergisi ↗
All excavation sites (385)
Türkiye
- Acemhöyük
- Aizanoi
- Alabanda
- Alacahöyük
- Amos
- Ani
- Aphrodisias
- Arslantepe Mound
- Aspendos
- Assos
- Ayanis Fortress
- Aşıklı Höyük
- Barcın Höyük
- Blaundus
- Boncuklu Höyük
- Can Hasan I
- Carchemish
- Claros Sanctuary
- Clazomenae
- Domuztepe
- Ephesus
- Euromus
- Gordion
- Göbekli Tepe
- Hadrianopolis in Paphlagonia
- Hattusha
- Hierapolis
- Iasos
- Kaman-Kalehöyük
- Karahantepe
- Karatepe-Aslantaş
- Kaunos
- Kibyra
- Knidos
- Kültepe-Kanesh
- Laodicea on the Lycus
- Letoon Sanctuary
- Limyra
- Magnesia on the Maeander
- Medieval City of Beçin
- Metropolis in Ionia
- Miletus
- Myra
- Nemrut Dağ
- Nysa on the Maeander
- Olympus in Lycia
- Oymaağaç Höyük — Nerik
- Patara
- Pergamon
- Perge
- Phaselis
- Priene
- Sagalassos
- Sanctuary of Apollo at Didyma
- Sanctuary of Labraunda
- Sapinuwa
- Sardis
- Sayburç
- Side
- Stratonikeia
- Tell Atchana – Alalakh
- Teos
- Tripolis on the Meander
- Troy
- Uluburun Shipwreck
- Xanthos
- Yenikapı – Theodosian Harbour Excavations
- Yeşilova Höyük
- Yumuktepe
- Zerzevan Castle
- Zeugma
- Zincirli Höyük — Sam'al
- Çatalhöyük
- Çavuştepe Fortress
- Çayönü
- Çukuriçi Höyük
