Itzan facts for kids

Itzan is an ancient Maya city in Guatemala. It's an archaeological site, which means it's a place where scientists study old ruins. Itzan is found in a part of Guatemala called Petén Department, near the town of La Libertad.

In the 1980s, some smaller buildings at Itzan were accidentally destroyed during oil exploration. This led archaeologists to quickly start digging to save important information. Even though Itzan was a small city, it seems to have been very important in its area. This is because it had many monuments and large buildings for its size.

People first lived in Itzan a very long time ago, during the Middle Preclassic period. They continued to live there until the Late Classic period.

Where is Itzan Located?

The ruins of Itzan are about 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) northwest of another Maya site called Dos Pilas. It sits on the bank of a small river that flows into the Pasion River.

The city was built on a natural hilltop. This hill was surrounded by deep ditches called ravines and swamps that filled with water during rainy seasons. The small river near Itzan starts from Laguna Itzan, a lake east of the site. A natural spring to the west likely provided fresh water for the city all year round.

Itzan is located roughly halfway between two other important Classic Period Maya cities: Altar de Sacrificios and Seibal. It's about 14 kilometers (8.7 miles) northeast of Altar de Sacrificios. The site is also about 50 kilometers (31 miles) west of the modern town of Sayaxché and 8 kilometers (5 miles) north of the Pasion River.

Itzan's History

Evidence suggests that people lived around Laguna Itzan even earlier, starting in the Early Preclassic period. Itzan was continuously lived in from the Middle Preclassic through the Late Classic periods. There was less activity during the Early Classic period, with only one burial found from that time.

Ancient writings from Dos Pilas tell us about Itzan's history. A stone staircase there, called Hieroglyphic Stairway 2, records that in 652 AD, the powerful city of Calakmul took control of Itzan. Dos Pilas also won a big battle against Itzan around that time. Itzan might have also fought against another city called El Chorro.

A noblewoman from Itzan became the main wife of B'alaj Chan K'awiil, a king of Dos Pilas. Their son was named Itzamnaaj B'alam. When the powerful Dos Pilas kingdom collapsed in the late 700s AD, it seemed to help Itzan. After that, Itzan became active again for a while.

Modern explorers found Itzan in February 1968. They were Dennis and Louisa Wheeler, who were volunteers with the Peace Corps. Later, archaeologists from the Ceibal Project explored the ruins in 1978, but they only spent a few hours there.

What the Site Looks Like

Itzan was a small city, but archaeologists found it interesting enough to dig there. Early studies showed many carved stone monuments and large buildings, some as tall as 7 meters (23 feet).

When the main part of the site was mapped in 1986, archaeologists noticed that many carved monuments had been damaged. Sadly, people looking for treasures had also cut into some of the buildings. Pieces of monuments that had been cut were moved to Flores, a city in the department, with plans to move them to Guatemala City later.

The center of Itzan has two main open areas called the North and South Plazas. There are also two smaller, enclosed areas called the West and East Plazuelas, which are completely surrounded by buildings.

The heart of the site includes a formal acropolis, which is like a raised city center. It has large open plazas and many stelae (tall carved stones) and altars. There are at least 25 of these monuments in total. Sadly, all of them have been moved from their original spots by looters who dug underneath them. Most of these monuments were originally placed in the open plazas in front of the biggest buildings.

Parts of ancient hieroglyphic texts were found near the North and South Stairways of the West Plaza. Much of the acropolis from the Late Classic period was built on top of even older structures from the Preclassic period.

Outside the main city center, about 3.6 to 4 kilometers (2.2 to 2.5 miles) to the south, archaeologists found at least three groups of simple homes. These homes were likely made of materials that don't last, like wood and thatch. They were built around central courtyards and not on raised platforms. This suggests that more people lived in Itzan than first thought, based only on the large stone buildings. The entire settled area of Itzan stretches along a ridge about 300 meters (984 feet) wide and 7 kilometers (4.3 miles) long. The main city center is near the middle of this area. A modern road now cuts through where the ancient settlement once was.

Stela 17 is a carved stone that has ancient writing on it. It mentions the rulers of Itzan and of the nearby city of Altar de Sacrificios. It also has a damaged part of the text that might talk about a war between Itzan and the site of El Chorro.

Stela 20 is a broken carved stone. A large piece of it was found northwest of the acropolis.

See also

In Spanish: Itzán para niños