What was the specific function of the North Acropolis at the Mayan site of Tikal?

The North Acropolis of the ancient Maya city of Tikal in Guatemala is an architectural complex that served as a royal necropolis and was a centre for funerary activity for over 1300 years.

What did the Mayans do in Tikal?

Tikal was the beating heart of the Mayan empire and ruled most of Mesoamerica politically, economically and militarily. By 600 AD it had a sports stadium, a school and a hospital. It also had a library packed with thousands of books. Today only four Mayan books still exist.

Is Tikal an Aztec or Mayan?

Mayan
Tikal is a complex of Mayan ruins deep in the rainforests of northern Guatemala. Historians believe that the more than 3,000 structures on the site are the remains of a Mayan city called Yax Mutal, which was the capital of one of the most powerful kingdoms of the ancient empire.

Is Tikal a Mayan city?

Tikal, city and ceremonial centre of the ancient Maya civilization. The largest urban centre in the southern Maya lowlands, it stood 19 miles (30 km) north of Lake Petén Itzá in what is now the northern part of the region of Petén, Guatemala, in a tropical rainforest.

Did the Mayans build Tikal?

Though Tikal may have been settled by at least 600 b.c., most of the city’s edifices were built during what is called the Classic period of Maya history, from a.d. 250 to 900. It was a time when the Maya created great artwork and amazing architecture across the region (see “Of Majesty and Mayhem,” p.

Who built the Mayan ruins of Tikal?

Tikal Temple I

What was Tikal known for?

Tikal was the capital of a conquest 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.

Where are the Mayan ruins in Guatemala?

The Famed Ruins of Tikal. Tikal is a spectacular place to tour if you want to see one of the most famous ruined cities of the Classic Period of the Maya. It is located in north central Petén, Guatemala, about 50 miles northwest of the border with Belize. Tikal is the largest and possibly the oldest of the Maya cities.

How was the Tikal built?

Between 200 B.C. and 200 A.D., Maya architects across the northern Petén designed short, broad temples with wide staircases flanked by enormous stucco masks. Plaster, made of burned and powdered limestone, was built up around stone armatures into elaborate deity faces.

What is the North Acropolis of Tikal?

The North Acropolis of the ancient Maya city of Tikal in Guatemala is an architectural complex that served as a royal necropolis and was a centre for funerary activity for over 1300 years. The acropolis is located near the centre of the city and is one of the most studied of Maya architectural complexes.

What does Tikal mean in Mayan?

Tikal (/ tiˈkɑːl /) (Tik’al 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 archeological sites and urban centers of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization.

Who excavated the North Acropolis of Guatemala?

Excavations directed by Edwin M. Shook and later by William Coe of the university investigated the North Acropolis and the Central Plaza from 1957 to 1969. The Tikal Project recorded over 200 monuments at the site. In 1979, the Guatemalan government began a further archeological project at Tikal, which continued through to 1984.

Where are the excavations in Tikal?

Excavations in the Great Plaza, North Terrace, and North Acropolis of Tikal. Tikal Reports. 1. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-Dta53LDHI