Río Azul
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| Maya civilization |
|---|
| History |
| Preclassic Maya |
| Classic Maya collapse |
| Spanish conquest of Yucatán |
| Spanish conquest of Guatemala |
Rio Azul is a Pre-Columbian archaeological site of the Maya civilization. in Río Azul National Park in present day Petén Department, in northern Guatemala. The Río Azul National Park has several Maya sites, the most important of which is Río Azul which is a Major Early Classic site along the Rio Azul banks.
The Rio Azul polity was the most important in this area of the Maya Lowlands and was populated by nobles who dominated the commerce routes. It was the main source of jester for axes and blades in the Lowlands, as the structures made entirely from jester debris show. Río Azul was built in 25 years, and the population is thought to have been 400,000 around 400 AD in a region measuring some 170 square kilometres (including Kinal and other cities in Belize). It was occupied from middle pre-classic to middle classic and was abandoned by 535 CE.
[edit] Site
The site itself is 3 square kilometres with 41 plazas, 752 structures, 21 sculptured stelas, 26 plain stelas, and 16 altars documented to date. The tallest temple is 47 mt high - a typical Preclassic Triadic Temple (three small structures on the top, the one in the center at the back and the others facing each other). Stela 1 mentions the alliance with Tikal, and Stela 2 records the visit of the King of La Milpa (now in Belize), the area was around 170 km² and was structured as a feudal state where nobility lived in farms around the city.
Among other findings, there was found a chocolate pot with a screw for a lid. It is world-renowned for a sepulture (bearing 1) with beautiful decoration (400AD), in bearing 12, there are also murals with the cardinal points perfectly aligned and representing the Moon (north), the Sun (east), Venus (south), and the Darkness (west).
Dams, canals, agricultural terraces and fortifications are distributed along the shores of the 'Rio Azul' river.
[edit] Access
Access to the site is either via Uaxactún, using a four-wheel drive vehicle, taking 5 hours, or via Melchor de Mencos in 6 hours. Sak Há Witznal (Clear Water Mountain) is located 80 km north east of Tikal.
Coordinates: 17°37′00″N 89°29′00″W / 17.6166667°N 89.4833333°W
