Archaeologists working alongside the construction of the Maya Train freight line in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula are preserving what may have been a ritual altar used by an ancient Maya community more than 1,500 years ago.
The structure, uncovered during archaeological salvage operations connected to the railway bypass to the Progreso Multimodal Terminal, is offering new insight into the social and spiritual life of smaller Maya settlements linked to major regional trade centres.
The discovery was made by the Archaeological Salvage Project overseeing investigations along the freight rail route between the towns of Poxilá and Paraíso, south of the port city of Progreso. The work is being coordinated by Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), under the Ministry of Culture.
At the centre of the find is a quadrangular structure measuring approximately six metres by six metres. Built on three superimposed levels and featuring a bench along its southern side, the structure occupies a prominent place within what researchers identified as a domestic residential complex.
Archaeologists believe the building may have served ceremonial or religious purposes for the Maya group that inhabited the area during the Classic period, between AD 400 and 750.
“Preserving this possible Mayan ritual structure means safeguarding a memory that belongs to everyone,” said Mexican Secretary of Culture Claudia Curiel de Icaza. She noted that each archaeological discovery contributes to understanding how ancient peoples organised their societies, developed beliefs and shaped cultural traditions that continue to influence modern identity.
The site was documented north of the community of Yaxché de Peón, in the municipality of Ucú, along a roughly 50-kilometre archaeological corridor west of Mérida. According to archaeologist Susana Echeverría Castillo, coordinator of the excavation work on the rail project’s first construction section, the investigations have revealed a network of settlements that once occupied north-western Yucatán.
Teams of archaeologists and more than 150 workers identified clusters of domestic compounds arranged around patios. The ancient Maya took advantage of low-lying terrain to build homes from roughly cut limestone. Although the original superstructures have long disappeared, researchers uncovered surviving wall alignments, foundations, entrances and openings that reveal the layout of the settlement.
Evidence suggests the community belonged to a wider regional network tied to trade and agriculture. Preliminary dating was supported by the discovery of an offering that included a ceramic vessel and a necklace made from shell and greenstone beads.
The unusual structure itself stood apart from nearby residential buildings. Archaeologist José Luis Díaz Cruz, who led its exploration, found indications that a small room once stood on the upper level, likely built with perishable materials such as wood and thatch.
Researchers also uncovered several intriguing elements within the structure. Near the centre, archaeologists documented a limestone disc known locally as a “panucho”, believed to have served as a side cover for a jobón, or hollowed-out log beehive traditionally used in Maya beekeeping. Nearby, they found an arrangement of three flat stones.
Photogrammetry studies further revealed a cavity carved directly into the bedrock to a depth of about 80 centimetres. Although no artefacts were recovered from inside the cavity, archaeologists believe the structure’s shape, elevated position and placement within the residential complex point towards ceremonial use.
To ensure its long-term protection, specialists plan to preserve the structure in place by covering it with geotextile beneath the planned service road.
Echeverría Castillo said similar structures have previously been documented near the Yucatán Science and Technology Park along the Sierra Papacal road. Those constructions, characterised by circular features atop quadrangular bases, were also interpreted as probable altars.
Researchers now hope to determine how these settlements were connected to larger Maya economic centres such as Chunchucmil and Oxkintok. Chunchucmil, in particular, played an important commercial role by linking coastal resources such as salt and fish with inland agricultural communities.
“We will analyse whether these groups participated in an exchange network,” Echeverría Castillo explained, suggesting that coastal products may have been traded for crops cultivated in the fertile inland plains.
The excavation effort involved a multidisciplinary team of archaeologists, restoration specialists, photographers and technical experts working to document and conserve the site before railway construction proceeds.
Header Image Credit : Susana Echeverría
Sources : INAH
