Discovery at El Salvador Pyramid Challenges Notions of Pre-Columbian Isolation

A recent finding at the top of a pyramid in El Salvador is challenging the long-held belief that pre-Columbian Salvadorans were disconnected from more advanced civilizations.

A team of archaeologists, led by Jan Szymański and Gabriela Prejs from the University of Warsaw, has uncovered five 2,400-year-old ceramic figurines at the largest pyramid of the San Isidro archaeological site. According to a study published in the journal Antiquity, these artifacts suggest that the pre-Columbian people of El Salvador had connections to other civilizations, contradicting the notion that they were less developed than their neighbors.

At the pyramid’s summit, the researchers discovered a potential funerary deposit, but instead of human remains, they found the five ceramic figurines, three of which have articulated heads similar to modern dolls. This discovery is significant, as it is only the second such group found in situ, and the first to feature a male figure.

As Szymański explained in a statement, the figurines may have been used as puppets to convey a message, and their placement at the site could have played a role in public rituals. The puppets’ facial expressions are particularly noteworthy, as they appear to change depending on the angle from which they are viewed. This intentional design may have been meant to enhance the range of ritual performances the puppets could have been used in.

The figurines, along with other artifacts found in the funerary deposit, such as jade pendants, suggest connections to other regions. The style of the figurines has been noted in western El Salvador and southern Guatemala, while similar jade pendants have been found in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. This implies that the people who frequented San Isidro 2,400 years ago shared customs with other Central American cultures, indicating at least some level of contact.

Szymański concludes that this discovery challenges the prevailing notion of El Salvador’s cultural backwardness or isolation in ancient times, revealing instead the existence of vibrant and far-reaching communities capable of exchanging ideas with distant places.

This finding also provides new insights into an ancient culture whose archaeological sites are difficult to investigate due to volcanic activity and population density. As Szymański notes, very little is known about the identities and ethnolinguistic affiliations of the creators of these ancient settlements, which predate the arrival of Europeans in the early 16th century.

Although these ancient puppets cannot speak, they have a significant story to tell, one that sheds new light on the culture and connections of pre-Columbian El Salvador.