The ruins of Machaquila fall within themunicipality ofPoptún, in thePetén department of Guatemala.[2] It is approximately 90 kilometres (56 mi) west of the town of Poptún, and 80 kilometres (50 mi) southeast ofSayaxché.[3] Machaquila is situated on the banks of the lowerMachaquila River, which is a major tributary of thePasión River.[4] The site is in a relatively isolated region.[5] During the Classic period, the city's location would have placed it upon atrade route running from theMaya Mountains in the east to the Pasión River in the west, and ultimately to theUsumacinta River.[1] Machaquila is 30 kilometres (19 mi) southeast of the contemporary Maya site ofSeibal.[6]
The site core containing the city's monumental architecture is protected, but under threat from occupation by landless peasants. The surrounding area, where the majority of the residential architecture is located, falls within privately owned farmland.[7]
Machaquila shared a paredEmblem Glyph with Cancuen, probably suggesting some form of joint rule and participation in a larger polity that included both cities.[8] A proposal that Machaquila, Cancuen, andTres Islas participated in a form of government that involved the transference of the status of capital from one city to the next has not been universally accepted.[6]
Machaquila flourished in theLate to Terminal Classic periods,[9] reaching the height of its power in approximately the ninth century.[10] The rise in activity at Machaquila appears to have been a side effect of the collapse of the power ofDos Pilas over the Petexbatún kingdom.[11]
In 2004, archaeologists announced that they had uncovered a hieroglyphic panel at Cancuen that depictsTajal Chan Ahk, the 8th-century king of that city. Thehigh relief sculpture shows him installing subordinate rulers at Machaquila.[12]
The principal architecture at Machaquila has been dated to the Late Classic period, and includes temples and palace complexes. By 1984, nineteen stelae had been found at the site.[9] Machaquila is unusual in the local region in lacking both anE-Group astronomical complex, and aballcourt, which are both architectural arrangements that are often found in neighbouring cities.[13] Machaquila is not particularly notable for its architecture or size, rather for its abundant sculpted monuments.[14]
This architectural group is a ceremonial complex that includes variouspyramids (Structures 16 to 20, and 22). Stelae and altars are associated with each of the pyramids. The investigating archaeologists also assume that this complex includes the tombs of city's rulers. The group was closed off from the rest of the city by Structure 45, which was probably residential in nature.[15]
Although many sculpted monuments were noted when the site was discovered, none remain at Machaquila. A few were moved in order to protect them, but the majority were looted and their whereabouts is unknown. Sculpted monuments from Machaquila included 18 stelae and 6 altars, and a series of sculpted blocks.[14] Those stelae that were rescued are now in theMuseo Nacional de Arqueología inGuatemala City. The remaining monuments at the site include broken stela butts, and featureless stelae where the sculpted portions have been cut away by looters.[15]
Chocón, Jorge E.; Juan Pedro Laporte (2002)."La ciudad de Machaquila en el municipio de Poptun"(PDF).Reporte 16, Atlas Arqueológico de Guatemala (in Spanish). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Instituto de Antropología e Historia. pp. 1–31. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2015-01-11.
Fahsen, Federico (January 1984). "Notes for a Sequence of Rulers of Machaquila".American Antiquity.49 (1). Society for American Archaeology:94–104.doi:10.2307/280514.JSTOR280514.(subscription required)
ITMB (1998).Guatemala (Map) (3rd ed.). 1:500000. International Travel Maps. Richmond, British Columbia, Canada: ITMB Publishing.ISBN0-921463-64-2.OCLC421536238.
Laporte, Juan Pedro; Héctor E. Mejía; Jorge E. Chocón (2005). J.P. Laporte; B. Arroyo; H. Mejía (eds.)."Machaquila en una perspectiva geográfica regional"(PDF).Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala (in Spanish). XVIII (2004). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología:400–417. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved2015-04-12.
Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes."Base de Datos Sitios Arqueológicos"(PDF) (in Spanish). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2012-05-26. Retrieved2010-06-10.
Adánez Pavón, Jesús; Jorge E. Chocón (2006)."Excavaciones en Machaquila, Temporada 2005: La Estructura 34 (Plazas D y E)"(PDF).Reporte 20, Atlas Arqueológico de Guatemala (in Spanish). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Dirección General del Patrimonio Cultural y Natural, Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes. pp. 124–151. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2011-09-14.
Chocón, Jorge E. (2003). J.P. Laporte; B. Arroyo; H. Escobedo; et al. (eds.)."Machaquila, un sitio abandonado por la Arqueología"(PDF).Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala (in Spanish). XVI (2002). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología:108–120. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved2015-04-12.
Chocón, Jorge E.; María Josefa Iglesias; Alfonso Lacadena; Jesús Adánez (2007). J.P. Laporte; B. Arroyo; H. Mejía (eds.)."Excavaciones en Machaquila, Petén: Temporada de campo 2005"(PDF).Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala (in Spanish). XX (2006). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología:679–698. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved2015-04-12.
Ciudad Ruiz, Andrés; Jesús Adánez (2006). J.P. Laporte; B. Arroyo; H. Mejía (eds.)."Excavaciones en las Plazas E y G de Machaquila, Petén"(PDF).Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala (in Spanish). XIX (2005). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología:1031–1043. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved2015-04-12.
Krempel, Guido (August 2011). "A new hieroglyphic sculpture from Machaquila, Petén, Guatemala".Mexicon.33 (4). Markt Schwaben, Germany: Verlag Anton Saurwein:92–96.ISSN0720-5988.JSTOR23758864.(subscription required)
Lacadena, Alfonso; María Josefa Iglesias (2005). J.P. Laporte; B. Arroyo; H. Mejía (eds.)."Una relación epigráfica relacionada con la Estructura 4 de Machaquila, Petén"(PDF).Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala (in Spanish). XVIII (2004). Guatemala City, Guatemala: Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología:655–668. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 2015-09-23. Retrieved2015-04-12.
