The hieroglyphic stairway,... where do I even begin? Out of the thousands of known Maya archaeological sites, only 20 of them are hieroglyphic stairways. Out of those 20 few have survived undamaged by time and nature. The hieroglyphic stariway is also known as El Palmar because it was found in Campeche, Mexico. These stairs were found still in their original positions and engraved with over 130 Maya glyphs.
The pyramidal structure that holds the stairway was built between the 7th and 8th Centuries A.D. Within these centuries, archaeologists have found evidence that city-states expressed their power by creating unique architectural centers that were meant to replicate their cosmology. A few decades after its construction a total of 90 blocks containing Maya glyphs were added, with more than 130 glyphs that refer to events registered in the Classic Maya period. Creating a stairway of six steps leading to a temple on top of the pyramid. Thats a long walk up.
The El Palmar staircase was not in the main city and because of that, it escaped recycling and is still up today, which is a very good thing. The stairway was first discovered in 2009. A man named Gudiel Guzmán, told another man named Kenichiro Tsukamoto, that he had found two carved stones while trashing his property for agricultural purposes. When they went to take a look at what these stones were, they realized that they weren’t just two stones. They were part of a hieroglyphic stairway.
The stones were covered in dirt and had plants growing on them. Although they were still close enough to the surface to check them out. Hieroglyphic stairways are believed to represent the most important rulers in the dynastic history of that place. In the stairway in El Palmar, a burial spot along with an offering space was found under the floor of the room. The remains of a male were also found.
I would enjoy being able to see a hieroglyphic stairway in person. From the pictures I found, they are different in size and are just incredible to look at. So much detail is put into a building. It is fascinating. Maybe we should feild trip to one sometime!
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