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Tikal
Also known as Yax Mutul, Mutul, Mutal
Tikal (; in modern Mayan orthography) is the ruin of an ancient city, which was likely to have been called Yax Mutal, found in a rainforest in Guatemala. It is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now the Petén Department in northern Guatemala. The site is part of Guatemala's Tikal National Park, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.
AI overview
Tikal is the ruins of a major ancient Maya city located in Guatemala's rainforest, making it one of the largest known archaeological sites from pre-Columbian Maya civilization. The site, now protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site within Guatemala's Tikal National Park, provides important evidence about how the Maya people lived and built their cities.
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Key facts
- Ancient site.name
- Tikal
- Ancient site.alternate_name
- Yax Mutal
- Ancient site.map_type
- Mesoamerica#Guatemala
- Ancient site.map_caption
- Location within Mesoamerica##Location within Guatemala
- Ancient site.native_name
- Yax Mutal
- Ancient site.location
- Petén, Flores
- Ancient site.region
- Petén Basin
- Ancient site.built
- 4th century BC
- Ancient site.epochs
- Early Classic to Late Classic
- Ancient site.cultures
- Maya civilization
- Ancient site.designation1
- WHS
- Ancient site.designation1_offname
- Tikal National Park
~59 min read
Article
31 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Geography
- Population
- History
- Preclassic
- Early Classic
- Tikal and Teotihuacan
- Tikal and Copán
- Late Classic
- Tikal hiatus
- Tikal and Dos Pilas
- Tikal after Teotihuacan
- Terminal Classic
- Rulers
- Modern history
- Site description
- Causeways
- Water reservoirs
- Water quality maintenance
- Role in political power
- Architectural groups
- Structures
- Altars
- Lintels
- Stelae
- Burials
- Ecology
- See also
- Notes
- References
- External links
Tikal (; in modern Mayan orthography) is the ruin of an ancient city, which was likely to have been called Yax Mutal, found in a rainforest in Guatemala. It is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now the Petén Department in northern Guatemala. The site is part of Guatemala's Tikal National Park, which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979.
Tikal was the capital of a state that became one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient Maya. Though monumental architecture at the site dates back as far as the 4th century BC, Tikal reached its apogee during the Classic Period, c. 200 to 900. During this time, the city dominated much of the Maya region politically, economically, and militarily, while interacting with areas throughout Mesoamerica such as the great metropolis of Teotihuacan in the distant Valley of Mexico. There is evidence that one of Tikal's great ruling dynasties was founded by conquerors from Teotihuacan in the 4th century AD. Following the end of the Late Classic Period, no new major monuments were built at Tikal and there is evidence that elite palaces were burned. These events were coupled with a gradual population decline, culminating with the site's abandonment by the end of the 10th century.
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10th-century disestablishments in the Maya civilization4th-century BC establishments in the Maya civilizationFormer populated places in GuatemalaMaya sitesMaya sites in Petén DepartmentNational parks of GuatemalaPetén–Veracruz moist forestsPopulated places established in the 4th century BCTikalWorld Heritage Sites in Guatemala
