Plaza of the Seven Temples

The Plaza of the Seven Temples (or Plaza de los Siete Templos in Spanish) is an architectural complex in the ruins of the Maya city of Tikal, in the Petén Department of northern Guatemala. It is to the south of Temple III and to the west of the South Acropolis; it is 300 metres (980 ft) to the southwest of the Great Plaza. The Plaza of the Seven Temples is situated directly to the east of the Mundo Perdido ("Lost World") Complex and takes its name from a row of seven small temples dating to the Late Classic Period (600–900 AD). The plaza has a surface area of approximately 25,000 square metres (270,000 sq ft), making it one of the three largest plazas in the city.

Two deposits of Middle Preclassic ceramic fragments were excavated in the southwest portion of the plaza. Each deposit consisted of thousands of fragments that had been placed in hollows carved in the limestone bedrock below the plaza. These are the earliest traces of human activity that have been found in the plaza and they have been dated to around 650 BC. These early ceramic deposits were not associated with any kind of construction activity.

The earliest traces of construction in the area of the Plaza of the Seven Temples consist of the first version of the E-Group temple complex facing onto the Lost World Plaza. This phase of construction has been dated to between 650 and 550 BC. The earliest evidence of occupation of the plaza itself dates to the Late Preclassic between 400 and 200 BC, and is related to the cap of black earth immediately overlying the bedrock, with archaeological materials being accidentally introduced by the first inhabitants. The first structure to be built in the plaza dates to about this time, when a small circular platform was erected upon the thin stucco floor that was the first formal levelling of the plaza. This platform stood 12 centimetres (4.7 in) high and measured 4 metres (13 ft) across. The remains of this building were found 0.75 metres (2.5 ft) under the surface of the central patio, in front of Temple 5D-95. Ash was found upon the southern part of the platform and it is believed that the structure was either an early residence or an altar.

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