Current Watch Site

The archaeological park of Kaminaljuyu sits wedged in the rolling hills of Guatemala’s highland central valley, surrounded by the ever-increasing urban development of Guatemala City. Kaminaljuyu, or “place of the ancestors” in the Mayan K'iche' language, is one of few Maya complexes of earthen construction to have survived in the region.

Settled in the 8th century B.C., Kaminaljuyu was abandoned by A.D. 1000 after nearly two millennia of continued occupation. Elaborate buildings, some with funerary chambers, reliefs, and painted surfaces, indicate a ruling elite settled in the area. Further, Kaminaljuyu’s strategic location and its control of an obsidian source drew the attention of the entire Maya civilization extending north to the iconic Mexican center of Teotihuacan.

Internal conflict and the collapse of Teotihuacan eventually led to the desertion of the developments surrounding present-day Guatemala City. Kaminaljuyu remains one of the earliest Maya sites in Mesoamerica and is of enormous symbolic importance to the people and heritage of Guatemala. The challenges of preserving earthen sites and insufficient resources have resulted in ongoing deterioration of the ancient complex.