Overview
- A peer-reviewed Science Advances study reports a central cruciform pit containing ceremonial jade objects and mineral pigments intentionally placed by cardinal directions.
- Radiocarbon dating places the cache to roughly 900–845 BCE, with construction beginning near 1000 BCE and continued ritual use over centuries.
- The monument’s east–west axis aligns with sunrise on October 17 and February 24, a 130-day span consistent with half of the 260-day Mesoamerican ritual calendar.
- Airborne LiDAR first revealed the 1.5-kilometer-long earthen platform in 2017, along with causeways, channels and a reservoir extending kilometers from the core.
- Researchers find no clear evidence of kingship or elite palaces at the site and estimate about 10.8 million person-days to build the main platform, plus hundreds of thousands for hydraulic features.