El Mirador

El Mirador is a large pre-Columbian Middle and Late Preclassic Maya settlement, located in the north of the modern department of El Petén [1]. El Mirador has white roads measuring 40 meters wide and between 2 and 5 meters high [1]. A detailed investigation began in 1978 with an archaeological project under the direction of Bruce Dahlin at Catholic University of America and Ray Matheny at Brigham Young University [1]. El Mirador flourished from about the 6th century BC to the 1st century AD, reaching its height from the 3rd century BC [1]. Then it experienced a hiatus of construction and perhaps abandonment for generations, followed by re-occupation and further construction in the Late Classic era, and a final abandonment about the end of the 9th century [1]. The civic center of the site covers some 10 square miles with several thousand structures, including monumental architecture from 10 to 72 meters high [1].