The Acanceh Dream

Just like any other archaeology student, Beatriz Quintal knew by heart the engravings made by those who had discovered the ancient Maya cities of the Yucatan. In one of these drawings–almost film-like in its depiction–two men admired a huge mask carved on a wall: the typical image of a mythological god found during an expedition through the jungle. "A find like this is an archaeologist's dream!", she mused. Little did Beatriz imagine that ten years later she would be the main character in a similar story.

Nothing is known about the huge mask–probably a representation of the sun god–which John Stephens discovered and Frederick Catherwood immortalized in 1840. Maybe it was stolen or destroyed; whatever the case, we only have the drawing, and if it weren't for the testimony of the two travelers, no one would have known the stone image ever existed.

A very different situation prevails today in Acanceh, a small rural settlement southeast of Merida, capital of the state of Yucatan. A year ago, three huge masks were found superimposed on a pyramid. This trio and other remains shed new light on the ancient Maya civilization. Their discoverer, Beatriz Quintal is now living what a decade ago she defined as "an archaeologist's dream."

A romantic might describe Acanceh as a "quaint little village"; a cynic would call it a "hole in the wall." In reality, for many years Acanceh was just a rural community located very near Merida. A couple of mounds said to be "Maya" and two colonial churches, symbols of the Spanish conquest, were the sum total of its historical heritage.

With a population of a few thousand people, Acanceh grew very little and very slowly over the centuries. The village developed around various pre-Hispanic structures, now contained within the urban area. Among these, the two most important are the Pyramid and the Palace of the Stuccos.

Acanceh is unique, for there is complete fusion between the current community and the ancient buildings: next to the Pyramid there is a grocery store, a bakery, several private lots and a storefront where local Alcoholics Anonymous meetings are held. The Palace of the Stuccos, in turn, adjoins private property where clothing is hung to dry in the sun and housewives draw water from their backyard wells. Occasionally, Acanceh's youth get on a game of street soccer at the foot of the monumental construction.

This unheard-of blending is equivalent to having a temple from the first years after Christ's incarnation built in your backyard. In addition, just in front of the pyramid rises the town's main Catholic church: dedicated to Our Lady of the Nativity, it was built in the 16th century utilizing carved stones formerly belonging to pre-Hispanic constructions.

Before starting work on Acanceh, the team headed by Beatriz Quintal had to research many years of records to find reliable historical data on the origins of the town. They were finally able to establish that there were settlements as far back as 300 B.C. and although the city was prosperous up to the year 1500, the end of the Post-Classic period, the site reached the height of its splendor during the Early Classic period (A.D. 300-600). Then came the city's decline and fall, probably due to the rise of a larger neighbor, Mayapan, which–as of 1200–had established itself as the most important city in the area.

"Acanceh was first mentioned in 1881, when French explorer Desireé Charnay spoke of several pyramids made with finely-carved blocks in one of the mounds, similar to other Maya buildings in the region" volunteers Beatriz.

"From 1990 to 1992, I put together a team from the INAH (The Mexican Anthropology and History Institute)," explains Beatriz, "to restore a small section of the south façade of the pyramid, and to excavate and restore the Palace of the Stuccos." By 1996, the only comprehensive project ever put together for Acanceh was underway.

New measurements determined that the town's original area covered about two square kilometers. No less important has been the finding of 160 structures and many remains of a series of pre-Hispanic walls which were used to divide the townspeople's lots.

In addition, it was proven that Acanceh's original inhabitants solved their drinking-water problem by using two cenotes, one located in the center of town and the other one kilometer away.

For those visiting Acanceh for the first time, nothing is more impressive than the Pyramid, located in front of the main square. It is a massive construction measuring 32 meters on each of its four sides and 15 meters tall; and it is just there, at the top, where Quintal discovered the three huge masks.

The pyramid at Acanceh has three, stepped "bodies." If observed from the side, two superimposed structures are clearly visible: a first pyramid, where the masks are found, now called the substructure (which at some point the Maya covered with earth, rocks and other materials to change the façade) and on top of it, the newer, more austere structure.

A nearly-destroyed foundation beside the substructure was probably a smaller pyramid similar to those, which were frequently located near the main façade of larger temples. This smaller structure leads the team's archaeologists to believe the Pyramid's main staircase faced east.

One of the distinguishing characteristics of the Pyramid is the narrowness of the steps that lead to the masks. Beatriz thinks the stairs were not designed for frequent use, but to carry the city's ruler or deity to the temple at the top.

The masks constitute a major find for Yucatan Peninsula: to date there are no reports of similar discoveries anywhere. On the border of the neighboring state of Campeche, and in Guatemala some similar figures have been found, but the mask discovered by Stephens and Catherwood is very different.

In Acanceh, "Mask I"–unearthed with a great deal of difficulty on one of the sides of the pyramid–is slightly canted backward on the north staircase of the third body of the substructure (the lower, older pyramid, which was covered by another, more recent building). It measures 3.20 meters wide by 2.25 meters high and still shows vestiges of red pigment.

One of its most noteworthy details are the earrings with three distinct designs: swirls, knots and spirals. There are also swirls, or wheels on the mask's forehead and some unusual designs on the eyes. The left portion of the mask is partially destroyed and only the part from the base of the nose ( which is almost totally lost) is still intact. There are remains of the mouth and the chin is complete.

Beatriz finds one of the elements of the mask of particular interest: although purposely carved that way for obvious esthetic reasons, the designs on the earrings are dissimilar. One explanation might be that each earring was carved by a different artist. Another, more complex reason according to Beatriz, was that the Maya, refusing to depict perfection (because only the gods were worthy of such a distinction), decided to incorporate mistakes into their works of art to show proper respect to the higher beings.

Masks II and III seem to represent the same individual (although not the one depicted in Mask I), perhaps also of great importance to the Maya religion. Both masks have mustaches and although the detailing on the foreheads is the same, the earrings have different symbols carved on them. Both masks face west and are in good condition.

According to the archaeologists, because of logical symmetry in Maya design, the three masks that have been unearthed indicate that there were probably originally a total of eight: two on each of the four sides of the pyramid.

Acanceh's inhabitants continue to look on these archaeological finds as a couple of earthen mounds. Visitors walking about town still hear the villagers say, "The other hill's around the corner. You want to see it?"... and the "hill" turns out to be the Palace of the Stuccos.

The palace stands very near a modest residence, almost in its backyard. The family often share a meal in the ample shade it provides.

A very thin woman of incalculable age walks away from the group, wiping her hands on her skirt. We ask if we can walk through the yard. She never hesitates, "Five pesos".

Beatriz Quintal thinks the Palace of the Stuccos should be called something else. In the tradition of the Spanish Conquistadors, pre-Hispanic buildings were named after the European buildings they most resembled. "Castles" are slanted pyramid-like formations, and "palaces" are long, low structures with wide corridors. However, Beatriz thinks that in the case of the Palace of the Stuccos, its structures should be simply named 2 and 2A.

The palace sits on a foundation, or base 50 meters long by 7 meters high and dates from the Late Classic period (AD 800-1000).

On the upper portion of the Palace there is a temple 13 meters long by 6 meters high, which sports a stucco-decorated frieze. Superimposed anthropomorphic figures can be seen, including monkeys, bats and other animals related to the Maya underworld. The brilliant colors used by the Maya of Acanceh to decorate their friezes still survive on a few of the building's corners.

For Beatriz Quintal the work is far from done. She's just begun a layout of the ancient city, for example. "It's slow going; we've got to get permission from the homeowners to dig in their yards and, in fact, the remains of ancient Acanceh are much larger than the town itself", says Beatriz. Also, the site's history must be recorded, its political system discovered and a lot of other questions about daily life answered.

And the future? Only time will tell. In July of 1998, the team headed by Beatriz Quintal began its third phase of investigations. The future looks bright for further discoveries, but only ancient Acanceh will have the last word.

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