Researchers Discover World's Oldest Mayan Temple

Archaeologists announced today that they have discovered the world's oldest ancient Mayan ceremonial compound. The structure was found at a site called Ceibal in the Central American lowlands, and apparently predates similar sites in the region by over 200 years.

Teams have so far excavated the plaza and pyramid, which researchers believe would have been used as a solar observatory of sorts for religious rituals. The discoveries made at the Ceibal site seem to indicate that the roots Mayan civilization are even more intricate than we previously thought.

There has been a longstanding dispute as to whether the Mayans developed their society independently, or based it on that of the Olmec people, an earlier culture. According to information gleaned from this new discovery however, neither of those two is the actual answer.

"This major social change happened through interregional interactions," said researcher Takeshi Inomata, an anthropologist at the University of Arizona.

In fact, it would appear that the entire region underwent a dramatic cultural shift around 1000 BC, with nearby cultures adopting similar architectural styles and religious beliefs.

"It's signaling to us that the Maya were not receiving this sophisticated stuff 500 years later from somebody else, but much of the innovation we're seeing out of the whole region may be coming out of Ceibal or a place like Ceibal," said Longwood University's Walter Witschey.

The researchers stress though that this isn't just about the Mayan civilization, but that the discoveries made at Ceibal are indicative of cultural evolution in general. In essence, it's proof that societies don't always develop out of the ruins of a previous one, but will often come about as the result of the interactions between multiple groups and cultures.

"This study is not just a study about this specific civilization," he said. "We also want to think about how human society changed and how human society develops."

Scientists are now working on an environmental analysis in an attempt to understand the climate of the region during that era.