Seibal facts for kids

Structure A-3 at Seibal.

Stela 11 at Seibal.

Seibal (also called El Ceibal in Spanish) was an important ancient city of the Maya civilization. It is located in northern Guatemala, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) southwest of the famous city of Tikal. Seibal was the biggest city in the Pasión River area.

People lived in Seibal for a very long time, from around 900 BC until it was completely abandoned in the 900s AD. It had two main periods of growth. The first was in the Late Preclassic period (400 BC – AD 200). After a quiet time, Seibal grew strong again in the Terminal Classic period, from about AD 830 to 890. At its peak, about 8,000 to 10,000 people lived there.

What makes Seibal special is that its monuments were still being built and carved with dates long after many other Maya cities in the Petén region had been abandoned. Many of Seibal's later monuments show art styles from central Mexico and the Gulf Coast of Mexico.

Seibal's early history is a bit unclear because it was defeated in AD 735 by a nearby kingdom called Dos Pilas. This led to the destruction of many of its older carved monuments. Seibal became a smaller state under Dos Pilas until that kingdom was also destroyed later. In AD 830, a new leader named Wat'ul Chatel arrived from Ucanal in the east. He helped Seibal become strong again, allowing it to last into the early 900s AD, long after many other Maya cities had fallen.

What Does "Seibal" Mean?

The name Seibal comes from the Spanish word ceibal. This word means "a place where many ceiba trees grow." When the ruins were first found, a lumber camp nearby was called El Ceibal. The spelling changed to "Seibal" because of a book written by Teoberto Maler in 1908, who used a German spelling.

Where is Seibal Located?

Seibal sits on high cliffs about 100 meters (328 feet) above the Pasión River. This river is a big branch of the Usumacinta River. The Usumacinta River flows north to the Gulf of Mexico. Seibal is in the Petén region of northern Guatemala, about 16 kilometers (10 miles) east of the modern town of Sayaxché. It was about 27 kilometers (17 miles) east of the city of Dos Pilas and 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Tikal. Lake Petén Itzá is about 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of the ruins.

Seibal is surrounded by tropical rainforests. The land around it is a mix of hills and flat areas made of limestone.

How Many People Lived There?

At its busiest time in the Late Preclassic period, about 1,600 people lived in the main part of Seibal. Another 8,000 people lived in the areas around the city, making the total population almost 10,000.

In the Early Classic period, the population dropped a lot, to only about 34% of its peak. But in the Late to Terminal Classic period, the population grew quickly again. It reached about 85% of its earlier peak. This might have happened because people from other cities came to Seibal around AD 830. After this, the population crashed again, and the site was completely abandoned by AD 930.

Who Lived Where?

Seibal had different groups of people. There were priest-kings, nobles, and other important people who lived in the main ceremonial center. Regular people lived in the areas outside the city center. When archaeologists dug up the site, they found that most of the burials were from the outer areas. This shows how the population was spread out by social class.

Important Rulers of Seibal

Here are some of the known rulers of Seibal:

History of Seibal

Seibal was first settled around 900 BC. It grew to its largest population in the Late Preclassic period, around 200 BC. After this, its population declined until the Early Classic period. Then, it grew again in the Late to Terminal Classic period before being completely abandoned.

Early Times (Preclassic Period)

The first people settled in Seibal around 900 BC. Pottery found from this time is similar to pottery from other parts of the western Petén region. Archaeologists also found a special offering from around 900 BC. It included tools for bloodletting and jade axes, similar to items found in the Olmec heartland on the Gulf Coast of Mexico. These items were likely made by the Olmec people.

By the end of the Late Preclassic period (around 200 BC), Seibal's population started to decline for reasons that are not fully understood.

Quiet Times (Early Classic Period)

During the Early Classic period (AD 200–600), Seibal continued to decline. The city was almost completely abandoned around AD 300.

Growing Again (Late Classic Period)

Seibal started to grow again in the Late Classic period, around AD 650. New people moved into the city and started a new kingdom. New buildings were constructed, especially in Group D, which became an important ceremonial area. However, any monuments built by these new rulers were damaged when the city was defeated in the 700s AD.

After Seibal's defeat, art and carvings from the site show influences from Central Mexico.

The first mention of Seibal in Maya writings is on a stone monument (Stela 15) at Dos Pilas, dated October 13, 721 AD. It talks about Seibal getting involved in a long war between the powerful cities of Tikal and Calakmul.

Seibal's Defeat

Part of a carving at Dos Pilas showing the Seibal emblem and the face of Yich'aak B'alam.

In AD 735, Ucha'an K'in B'alam, the third king of Dos Pilas, attacked Seibal. He captured Seibal's king, Yich'aak B'alam. Instead of being killed, Yich'aak B'alam became a ruler under Dos Pilas. Ucha'an K'in B'alam built monuments at Dos Pilas, Aguateca, and even Seibal itself to celebrate his victory. He ordered the destruction of Seibal's older written records on monuments. Inscriptions at Dos Pilas and Aguateca specifically say "they destroyed the writing" and "they chopped the writing off the statues."

Yich'aak B'alam continued to rule Seibal as a vassal under the next king of Dos Pilas, K'awiil Chan K'inich, until at least 747 AD.

Seibal became independent again in the late 700s AD when the Dos Pilas kingdom was destroyed. Ajaw B'ot became king in AD 771, making Seibal an independent capital once more. After AD 800, Seibal had a quiet period for about 30 years, with no new monuments being built.

Last Great Period (Terminal Classic)

With its independence, Seibal became very important again for a short time. It was a major city on the important Pasión River trade route. The buildings and pottery from this time show connections to the northern Yucatán Peninsula and the Gulf Coast of Mexico.

Seventeen stone monuments (stelae) carved between AD 849 and 889 show a mix of Maya and foreign styles. For example, one shows a lord wearing the mask of Ehecatl, the central Mexican wind god. This mix of styles suggests that Seibal's new leaders were Maya lords who were adapting to changing times by using symbols from both Maya and central Mexican cultures. Some of these monuments even have non-Maya calendar symbols. These changes at Seibal are linked to the Putún Maya (also called Chontal Maya), who were warrior-merchants from the Gulf Coast of Mexico and controlled trade along the Pasión River.

Writings at Seibal suggest that the city's new strength came from a new alliance with the cities of Caracol and Ucanal in the east. These cities had survived the spreading Classic Maya collapse. They likely wanted to reopen the old Pasión-Usumacinta trade route and were drawn to Seibal because it was easy to defend and overlooked the Pasión River.

Seibal's new beginning happened in AD 830 with the arrival of Wat'ul Chatel. He became the new lord, but he was a vassal of Chan Ek' Hopet of Ucanal. In 849, the new king dedicated a new building and stelae. This was watched by Jewel K'awil of Tikal and Chan Pet, king of Calakmul. Wat'ul Chatel built an interesting new temple-stela arrangement south of the Central Plaza of Group A. Structure A-3 is a low pyramid with carvings.

Wat'ul Chatel's last monument was put up in 889 AD. This is also the last dated monument found at Seibal. By 900 AD, the city was almost completely abandoned. The entire region had been affected by the Classic Maya collapse, and trade no longer flowed along the Pasión-Usumacinta route. Most other Maya capitals were already empty, and whatever help Seibal had received from its allies had disappeared. By 930 AD, the site was completely empty.

The later monuments at Seibal show a drop in quality over about 40 years. They look flatter and less detailed than earlier ones. This might mean that the skilled artists were becoming fewer as time went on.

Recent Discoveries

Loggers probably found the ruins of Seibal around 1890. Federico Arthes, a logging company owner, first reported the ruins in 1892. He took molds of some of the stone monuments (stelae) for an exhibit in Chicago in 1893. This brought the newly discovered ruins to the attention of archaeologists.

In 1895, Teoberto Maler explored Seibal for the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University. He made a map of the site and found a new stela. He came back in 1905 but didn't find more monuments. The Peabody Museum published his work in 1908.

Later, Sylvanus Morley visited in 1914. The Peabody Museum returned for a detailed study from 1964 to 1968, led by Gordon Willey. More digging happened in 2006.

What Seibal Looks Like

Seibal is a medium-sized site. The main part of the city has three main groups of buildings (Groups A, C, and D) on hilltops. These groups are connected by raised pathways called causeways. The causeways were built with stone and had low walls. Group D was like a hidden fort above the river. Group A is smaller but has most of the carved monuments.

Only two structures at Seibal have been restored: the A-3 temple platform and the C-79 circular platform. These were restored in the 1960s.

Buildings and Structures

Group A is in the main part of the city. It has three open areas (plazas): the North, South, and Central Plazas. It has more than 50 mounds around these plazas. Monuments from when Seibal was under Dos Pilas (AD 735–761) are in the Central Plaza. This group also has a ball court from the Terminal Classic period, which looks similar to the one at Uxmal.

Group C is on Causeway II. It has over 40 mounds.

Group D is a compact group at the east end of Causeway III. It is in a good defensive spot overlooking the Pasión River. It has more than 70 buildings crowded around five plazas. Group D only had one plain stone monument.

Structure A-3 is a temple platform in the middle of the South Plaza. It has stairs on all four sides. Five stone monuments (stelae) are connected to this building: one at the base of each stairway and a fifth inside the building on top. Three large jade stones were buried under the central stela. King Wat'ul Chatel dedicated this building and its stelae in AD 849. Structure A-3 has the remains of a special arched roof called a corbeled vault, which is the only one left at Seibal.

This building was very unique. It was a radial pyramid (meaning it had stairs on all sides) with a square shrine on top that had four doors. Each door opened onto one of the stairways. The temple building had three rooms. The top of the temple had a colorful stucco frieze (a decorated band) that showed large sculptures of King Wat'ul Chatel above each door. Smaller figures and panels with designs, plants, and animals were also part of the frieze. Old gods like Itzamna and Pawatun were in the center of these panels.

Structure A-10 is a 28-meter (92-foot) tall temple-pyramid. It is the tallest building at the site.

Structure A-13 is another radial pyramid. Archaeologists found a mass burial here with parts of 11 people, including two women and a child. This was not a typical Maya burial and dates to AD 930, very late in the city's history.

Structure A-14 is covered by the forest. It once had a stairway with hieroglyphs (Maya writing) that told the story of Seibal's defeat by Dos Pilas. The stones have been moved. This building also contained the burial of an important woman.

Structure A-16 was likely part of a royal palace in the Terminal Classic period. It was built with finely cut limestone blocks, and its walls were covered with stucco painted orange and turquoise.

The unusual circular structure C-79.

Structure C-79 is a circular platform with three levels. It was built during the Terminal Classic period on top of an older structure. Circular buildings like this often came from central Mexico and were usually temples for Ehecatl, the god of wind. However, the building on top of Structure C-79 was rectangular, not circular like Ehecatl's temples. This structure has two stairways. A circular jaguar altar sits in front of the structure. It has a simple carving of a jaguar's head. Structure C-79 and the altar date to about AD 870.

Carved Stones (Monuments)

The monuments at Seibal include many stelae, which are tall, carved stone slabs. They often show figures and hieroglyphs. The monuments at Seibal are made from hard limestone, which is why they are generally well-preserved. During excavations in the 1960s, 57 stelae were found. 22 of these were carved, and 35 were plain.

Hieroglyphic Stairway 1 was on the front of Structure A-14. King Ucha'an K'in B'alam of Dos Pilas put it there to show that Seibal was his vassal after its defeat. The stones are no longer in their original place.

Stela 1 is on the north side of the South Plaza. It mentions someone called "Knife-Wing," who is also known from the distant city of Chichen Itza. It is dated to AD 869.

Stela 2 is thought to be from around AD 870, even though it has no writing. It shows a masked figure facing forward, which is unique for Seibal. It was broken into pieces but has been put back together.

Stela 3 has a calendar date that is not typically Maya. One of the symbols is cipactli, a crocodile head used for the first day of the 260-day calendar in central Mexico. This stela was moved to a museum in Guatemala City.

Stela 8 is a well-preserved monument on the south side of Structure A-3. It shows King Wat'ul Chatel wearing jaguar claws on his hands and feet, like the Bearded Jaguar God. He holds the head of the god K'awiil. The text describes a visitor named Hakawitzil, who is linked to the founding stories of the K'iche' people in the Guatemalan Highlands.

Stela 10 is on the north side of Structure A-3. It shows Wat'ul Chatel in Terminal Classic Maya style, but his face looks foreign and has a mustache, which is not common for Maya people. The writing on this stela mentions visitors from Tikal, Calakmul, and Motul de San José. Wat'ul Chatel wears a headdress linked to the gods of Seibal, trying to connect himself more to the city he came to rule.

Stela 11 is on the east side of Structure A-3. It tells the story of Seibal being re-established on March 14, 830, and the new lord, Wat'ul Chatel, being installed as a vassal of Chan Ek' Hopet of Ucanal. A carving below the ruler shows a captured person. The writing describes Wat'ul Chatel arriving with his special carrying chairs (palanquins) and his patron gods.

Stela 14 dates to about AD 870 and is in good condition. It has art styles similar to sculptures at distant Chichen Itza in the northern Yucatán Peninsula.

Stela 19 shows the foreign influences at Seibal during the Late Classic period. It depicts a lord wearing a mask of the central Mexican wind god Ehecatl.

Stela 20 is one of the last stelae put up at Seibal, dating to AD 889.

Stela 21 is inside the chamber at the top of Structure A-3. It was badly damaged when the roof collapsed. It shows the lord of Seibal, Wat'ul Chatel, holding a special staff. Like Stela 8, the king wears symbols of the Bearded Jaguar God.

Images for kids

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  Structure A-3

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  Stela 2 at Seibal

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  Stela 2 as photographed by Teoberto Maler in the early 20th century