The Mystery of La Danta (El Mirador), the Tallest Pyramid in America
The archaeological site known today as "El Mirador", located in the Mesoamerican jungle of Guatemala, was only partially discovered in 1930. However, it wasn't until 1962 that researcher Ian Graham conducted the first studies of the area and created a map of the city.
According to the latest research, El Mirador may have been inhabited as early as 1800 BCE, but the city’s peak period was around 300 BCE and lasted for about two centuries until 100 BCE. During this time, the Maya civilization had already achieved significant advancements, including complex writing systems.
Recent excavations indicate that El Mirador was abandoned around 100 CE for reasons that remain unknown, and it was later reoccupied in 700 CE before being permanently abandoned in 900 CE. This mysterious sequence of abandonment and reoccupation is still an unresolved enigma: why would an important city be abandoned only to be resettled centuries later?
It is worth noting that the Maya civilization had not yet perfected agricultural techniques, so it is possible that prolonged droughts forced the inhabitants of El Mirador to migrate en masse to more humid areas. Centuries later, descendants of the original inhabitants might have returned to revive ancient religious traditions, choosing to resettle near the grand pyramid. While this is a plausible hypothesis, further studies are necessary to confirm it.
Judging by the size of the site, which spans 26 square kilometers, its hundreds of buildings, several of which are 30 meters high, and major structures like El Tigre (55 meters high) and the La Danta pyramid (72 meters high), it is estimated that tens of thousands of people lived in El Mirador. These inhabitants developed a high degree of labor specialization, enabling them to construct complex and multifunctional structures.
Recent research has revealed that El Mirador was interconnected with nearby cities through road networks called sacbeob. Some of these roads extended to Nakbé (12 kilometers away) and El Tintal (20 kilometers away). This suggests that trade routes existed between El Mirador and other nearby centers, potentially including Tikal. These routes likely facilitated the exchange of minerals such as jade, obsidian, and lapis lazuli for agricultural products.
One of El Mirador’s defining features is the presence of several triadic pyramids, which are structures consisting of a main pyramid flanked by two smaller buildings, all situated on a ceremonial platform.
What inspired the creation of triadic constructions? Could the concept of a Universal Trinity have motivated the ancient builders of El Mirador to adopt this architectural style?
The most prominent of the triadic structures is the La Danta pyramid (a modern name, as "danta" means "tapir" in Spanish).
At 72 meters tall, La Danta is higher than the Temple of the Two-Headed Serpent in Tikal, making it the tallest ancient pyramid in the New World. Its total volume is also remarkable: 2,800,000 cubic meters, surpassing the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt by 200,000 cubic meters.
The pyramid appears to have been constructed in phases, beginning with a massive rectangular base measuring 320 by 600 meters. Ongoing studies aim to determine whether La Danta served exclusively ceremonial and ritual purposes or if it had additional functions.
El Mirador continues to astonish researchers dedicated to uncovering its secrets. In recent years, a stunning bas-relief sculpture was unearthed, depicting a scene from Mayan mythology. It illustrates the dual being Ixbalanque-Hunacpú emerging from the underworld, carrying the head of their father, Hun-Hunapú.
YURI LEVERATTO
