Chiapa de Corzo (Mesoamerican site)
Encyclopedia
Chiapa de Corzo is an archaeological site
of pre-Columbian
Mesoamerica
, located in the Central Depression of Chiapas of present-day Mexico
. It rose to prominence during the Middle Formative
period, becoming a regional center or capital that controlled trade along the Grijalva River
. By then, its public precinct had reached 18-20 ha in size, with total settlement approaching 70 ha. The site is believed to have been settled by Mixe–Zoquean speakers, bearers of the Olmec
culture that populated the Gulf and Pacific Coasts of southern Mexico. Chiapa de Corzo and a half dozen other western Depression centers appear to have coalesced into a distinct Zoque
civilization by 700 BCE, an archaeological culture that became the conduit between late Gulf Olmec society and the early Maya
. Certain Mesoamerican traits such as planned cities, earthen pyramids, E-Group
commemorative complexes, cloudy-resist waxy pottery, incensarios, and early logographic writing may have originated in the Zoque
region. Chiapa de Corzo and a number of western Depression sites were abandoned by the Late Classic
period, a population change that closely coincides with the invasion of a war like group of Mangue
-speaking people known as the Chiapanec
.
The modern township of Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas
, founded in Colonial times and after which the site was named, is nearby.
The site shows evidence of continual occupation since the Early Formative period
(ca.
1200 BCE
). The mounds and plazas at the site, however, date to approximately 700 BCE with temples and palaces constructed at the end of the Late Formative
or Protoclassic period, between 100 BCE and 200 CE. Around 100 BCE, Maya pottery types began to be included in elite burials, although utilitarian ceramics retained traditional patterns. This has suggested to some researchers, that the Maya culture to the east exerted influence or even control over Chiapa de Corzo, although there seems to be a waning of that Maya influence in the first centuries CE
. It was during this time that the ancient platform mounds were covered with limestone and stucco.
The site has been heavily encroached upon over the last 70 years with the construction of roads, homes, businesses, utility systems, and a cemetery. The Nestlé company constructed a large milk processessing plant in the center of the ruin in the late 1960s, removing Mound 17, one of the major ceremonial mounds at the site. In recent years, the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) has purchased sections of the site from local land owners. INAH officially opened a small portion of the ruin to tourists on December 8, 2009. The site is currently under investigation by a collaborative team of reasearchers from Brigham Young University, INAH-Chiapas, and Mexico's UNAM (see http://chiapadecorzo.byu.edu/).
The oldest Mesoamerican Long Count calendar
date yet discovered, December 36 BCE, was found on Stela 2 (which is not a stela at all, but rather a misnamed, inscribed wall panel). All that survives of the original text is the day-name and the digits 7.16.3.2.13.
Chiapa de Corzo is also notable for a pottery sherd containing what is likely Epi-Olmec script. Dated to as early as 300 BCE, this sherd would be the oldest instance of that writing system
yet discovered.
The site possesses possibly the earliest example of a Mesoamerican palace complex in Mound 5. This palace was constructed in the first century CE and ritually destroyed a couple centuries later.
More than 250 Formative period burials have been scientifically excavated at Chiapa de Corzo. Many derive from a unique Late Formative burial ground below the Mound 1 plaza. Chiapa de Corzo has the largest and perhaps the best chronologically subdivided Formative period burial sample in southern Mesoamerica.
Chiapa de Corzo has more clay cylinder seals and flat stamps than any other Formative Mesoamerican site, save Tlatilco
. Hieroglyphs appear on examples made around 100 BCE.
In 2008, archaeologists discovered a massive Middle Formative Olmec
axe deposit at the base of Chiapa de Corzo's Mound 11 pyramid. This deposit dates to around 700 BCE and is the second one of its kind found in Chiapas after San Isidro
. It is associated with one of the earliest E-Group
astronomical complexes in Mesoamerica.
In April 2010, archaeologists discovered the 2,700-year-old tomb of a dignitary within Mound 11 that is the oldest pyramidal tomb yet discovered in Mesoamerica.
Archaeological site
An archaeological site is a place in which evidence of past activity is preserved , and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and represents a part of the archaeological record.Beyond this, the definition and geographical extent of a 'site' can vary widely,...
of pre-Columbian
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
, located in the Central Depression of Chiapas of present-day Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. It rose to prominence during the Middle Formative
Mesoamerican chronology
Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...
period, becoming a regional center or capital that controlled trade along the Grijalva River
Grijalva River
Grijalva River, formerly known as Tabasco River. is a 480 km long river in southeastern Mexico. It is named after Juan de Grijalva who visited the area in 1518. The river rises in Chiapas highlands and flows from Chiapas to the state of Tabasco through the Sumidero Canyon into the Bay of...
. By then, its public precinct had reached 18-20 ha in size, with total settlement approaching 70 ha. The site is believed to have been settled by Mixe–Zoquean speakers, bearers of the Olmec
Olmec
The Olmec were the first major Pre-Columbian civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco....
culture that populated the Gulf and Pacific Coasts of southern Mexico. Chiapa de Corzo and a half dozen other western Depression centers appear to have coalesced into a distinct Zoque
Zoque
The Zoque are an indigenous people of Mexico; they speak variants of the Zoque languages.This group consists of 41,609 people, according to the 2000 census...
civilization by 700 BCE, an archaeological culture that became the conduit between late Gulf Olmec society and the early Maya
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
. Certain Mesoamerican traits such as planned cities, earthen pyramids, E-Group
E-Group
E-Groups are unique architectural complexes found among a number of ancient Maya settlements. They are central components to the settlement organization of Maya sites and could have served as astronomical observatories. The alignment of these structural complexes corresponds to the sun's...
commemorative complexes, cloudy-resist waxy pottery, incensarios, and early logographic writing may have originated in the Zoque
Zoque
The Zoque are an indigenous people of Mexico; they speak variants of the Zoque languages.This group consists of 41,609 people, according to the 2000 census...
region. Chiapa de Corzo and a number of western Depression sites were abandoned by the Late Classic
Mesoamerican chronology
Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...
period, a population change that closely coincides with the invasion of a war like group of Mangue
Mangue
the word Mangue can refer to several things:*The Mangue Bit, a Brazilian music style.*The Mangue language, an extinct Oto-Manguean language of Nicaragua.*The Mangue people, who spoke the language....
-speaking people known as the Chiapanec
Chiapanec
Chiapanec is the name of an indigenous Mexican language of the Oto-Manguean language family. The 1990 census reported 17 speakers of the language in southern Chiapas out of an ethnic population of 32, but later investigations failed to find any speakers....
.
The modern township of Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas
Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas
Chiapa de Corzo is a small city and situated in the west-central part of the Mexican state of Chiapas. Located in the Grijalva River valley of the Chiapas highlands, Chiapa de Corzo lies some 15 km to the east of the state capital, Tuxtla Gutiérrez...
, founded in Colonial times and after which the site was named, is nearby.
Site history
Mesoamerican chronology
Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...
(ca.
Circa
Circa , usually abbreviated c. or ca. , means "approximately" in the English language, usually referring to a date...
1200 BCE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
). The mounds and plazas at the site, however, date to approximately 700 BCE with temples and palaces constructed at the end of the Late Formative
Mesoamerican chronology
Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...
or Protoclassic period, between 100 BCE and 200 CE. Around 100 BCE, Maya pottery types began to be included in elite burials, although utilitarian ceramics retained traditional patterns. This has suggested to some researchers, that the Maya culture to the east exerted influence or even control over Chiapa de Corzo, although there seems to be a waning of that Maya influence in the first centuries CE
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
. It was during this time that the ancient platform mounds were covered with limestone and stucco.
The site has been heavily encroached upon over the last 70 years with the construction of roads, homes, businesses, utility systems, and a cemetery. The Nestlé company constructed a large milk processessing plant in the center of the ruin in the late 1960s, removing Mound 17, one of the major ceremonial mounds at the site. In recent years, the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) has purchased sections of the site from local land owners. INAH officially opened a small portion of the ruin to tourists on December 8, 2009. The site is currently under investigation by a collaborative team of reasearchers from Brigham Young University, INAH-Chiapas, and Mexico's UNAM (see http://chiapadecorzo.byu.edu/).
Notable finds
Mesoamerican Long Count calendar
The Mesoamerican Long Count calendar is a non-repeating, vigesimal and base-18 calendar used by several Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures, most notably the Maya. For this reason, it is sometimes known as the Maya Long Count calendar...
date yet discovered, December 36 BCE, was found on Stela 2 (which is not a stela at all, but rather a misnamed, inscribed wall panel). All that survives of the original text is the day-name and the digits 7.16.3.2.13.
Chiapa de Corzo is also notable for a pottery sherd containing what is likely Epi-Olmec script. Dated to as early as 300 BCE, this sherd would be the oldest instance of that writing system
Mesoamerican writing systems
Mesoamerica, like India, Mesopotamia, China, and Egypt, is one of the few places in the world where writing has developed independently. Mesoamerican scripts deciphered to date are logosyllabic, combining the use of logograms with a syllabary, and they are often called hieroglyphic scripts...
yet discovered.
The site possesses possibly the earliest example of a Mesoamerican palace complex in Mound 5. This palace was constructed in the first century CE and ritually destroyed a couple centuries later.
More than 250 Formative period burials have been scientifically excavated at Chiapa de Corzo. Many derive from a unique Late Formative burial ground below the Mound 1 plaza. Chiapa de Corzo has the largest and perhaps the best chronologically subdivided Formative period burial sample in southern Mesoamerica.
Chiapa de Corzo has more clay cylinder seals and flat stamps than any other Formative Mesoamerican site, save Tlatilco
Tlatilco
Tlatilco was a large pre-Columbian village in the Valley of Mexico situated near the modern-day town of the same name in the Mexican Federal District. It was one of the first chiefdom centers to arise in the Valley, flourishing on the western shore of Lake Texcoco during the Middle Pre-Classic...
. Hieroglyphs appear on examples made around 100 BCE.
In 2008, archaeologists discovered a massive Middle Formative Olmec
Olmec
The Olmec were the first major Pre-Columbian civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco....
axe deposit at the base of Chiapa de Corzo's Mound 11 pyramid. This deposit dates to around 700 BCE and is the second one of its kind found in Chiapas after San Isidro
San Isidro
Isidro and Ysidro are Spanish forms of the personal name Isidore. San Isidro or San Ysidro may refer to:-People:* Agot Isidro , Filipina actress...
. It is associated with one of the earliest E-Group
E-Group
E-Groups are unique architectural complexes found among a number of ancient Maya settlements. They are central components to the settlement organization of Maya sites and could have served as astronomical observatories. The alignment of these structural complexes corresponds to the sun's...
astronomical complexes in Mesoamerica.
In April 2010, archaeologists discovered the 2,700-year-old tomb of a dignitary within Mound 11 that is the oldest pyramidal tomb yet discovered in Mesoamerica.