El Pilar
| El Pilar | |
| Archaeological reserve | |
 Tzunu'un, a Maya house site surrounded by forest vegetation at El Pilar
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| Countries | Belize, Guatemala |
|---|---|
| Regions | Cayo District, El Petén |
| Municipalities | San Ignacio, Melchor de Mencos |
| Landmark | Ancient Maya city |
| Location | Guatemala-Belize border |
| - elevation | 200 m (656 ft) |
| - coordinates | 17°15′24″N 89°09′19″W / 17.25667°N 89.15528°WCoordinates: 17°15′24″N 89°09′19″W / 17.25667°N 89.15528°W |
| Area | 20 km2 (8 sq mi) |
| Date | 1997 |
| Visitation | allowed |
El Pilar is an ancient Maya city center located on the Belize-Guatemala border. The site is located 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) north of San Ignacio, Belize and can be accessed through the San Ignacio and Bullet Tree Falls on the Belize River. The name "El Pilar" is Spanish for "watering basin", reflecting the abundance of streams around the site and below its escarpment, which is rare in the Maya area.
The monuments of El Pilar are at the center of a 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) protected area known as El Pilar Archeological Reserve for Maya Flora and Fauna, declared a cultural monument in both Belize and Guatemala in 1998. El Pilar is the largest Maya site in the Belize River area with over 25 plazas and hundreds of other major buildings, covering about 120 acres (49 ha).
Archaeologist Anabel Ford first mapped El Pilar in 1983 in the course of her Belize River Archaeological Settlement Survey or BRASS project. Settlement patterns in the region suggest a hierarchy of community size and composition that was directly related to farmland. One of the most extensive areas was of farmlands discovered at El Pilar, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of the Belize River on the edge of the major upland escarpment that leads 47 kilometres (29 mi) to the major center of Tikal.
Since 1993, a major archaeological field survey excavation project marked the initial examination of El Pilar. Under the direction of Anabel Ford, the detailed map was executed with engineering survey instruments and excavations focused on access ways, stairs, and doorways. When the monuments were mapped, the team verified the causeway system that linked from the east to the west uniting one ancient Maya center in two modern nations: Belize and Guatemala. Later excavations tunneled into major temple revealing a 2000 years construction history. Ford and her team are currently working with Lidar in order to map the area more extensively.
The city grew from Middle Preclassic period (800 BC), with the first small temples and plazas identified in the main eastern temple of Plaza Copal. The civic area was expanded, reaching its greatest extent before 1000 AD. At its height in the Late Classic, the total population of El Pilar is estimated to have exceeded 180,000.
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Wikipedia