El Tintal — Mano de León Pyramid
Maya Late Preclassic, c.400 BCE–150 CE·Maya (Preclassic Mirador Basin)·🇬🇹 Petén Department, Mirador Basin, Guatemala
About
About El Tintal — Mano de León Pyramid
Mano de León pyramid at El Tintal (c.400 BCE–150 CE Preclassic) — 30 m high, 50 m base stepped pyramid second to El Tintal's Catzin structure (39 m). In Mirador Basin 25 km SE of Mirador, connected by causeway. Acuña & Hansen documented stucco frieze fragments and looter trench exposing 7 construction phases.
Why it mattersThird Mirador Basin superpyramid proving 100-km urban network.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Tintal–Mirador political relation — equal or subordinate?
Theories
- 01Basin causeway network = earliest Maya state road
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.200 BCE
- Period
- Maya Late Preclassic, c.400 BCE–150 CE
- Culture
- Maya (Preclassic Mirador Basin)
- Builders
- Maya (El Tintal polity)
- Purpose
- Civic-ceremonial pyramid — city centre shrine of Tintal state
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.200 BCE
Initial construction / foundation
c.800 CE
Major refurbishment / enlargement phase
c.1500 CE
Abandonment or conversion
1890–1930
Modern rediscovery and first scientific survey
On the ground
Structures & features
17.5740° N · 89.9980° W · 200 m · 2 mapped features
Upper terrace stucco frieze fragment
friezeStucco deity profile preserved on eastern terrace
17.5741° N · 89.9979° WSeven-phase construction cut (looter trench exposure)
stratigraphyExposed vertical cut showing 7 superimposed pyramids within
17.5739° N · 89.9981° W