Four Treasures Reference Database
Record No. 28583

The Olmec rock Carvings at Pijijiapan, Chiapas, Mexico and Other Olmec Pieces from Chiapas and Guatemala

Journal Article
Navarrete, C. (1974) The Olmec rock Carvings at Pijijiapan, Chiapas, Mexico and Other Olmec Pieces from Chiapas and Guatemala. Papers of the New World Archaeological Foundation, No. 35, pp. 1–26.
Sinkankas/Born No.: NIS/NIB  |  RWHL
gems, jade, pyroxene jade, fei cui, mesoamerica, Guatemala, Mexico, Aztec, Olmec, Maya, Costa Rica, Honduras
During the last twelve years, the New World Archaeological Foundation has sponsored explorations on the Pacific coast of Chiapas ([1]) for the purpose of establishing a cultural chronology for the region and describing the life and history of the ancient inhabitants of this extensive zone, where foreign influences played a major role. This area is the natural corridor through which many migrating peoples and traders passed; it is a link between Mesoamerica and Central America. The NWAF has especially promoted the investigation of the origin and development of the cultures of the so-called Formative period ([1]). This time period includes the Olmec culture and its art forms, together with the archaeological problems of its appearance and diffusion. For that reason, the discovery of the rock carvings at Pijijiapan has great importance. These sculptures are a new example of the “greater” artistic expression of the Olmec culture of the Gulf Coast, which spread toward southern Mesoamerica, an area in which monumental manifestations of that culture are rare. These rock carvings came to our attention during a reconnaissance in early 1968 ([1]) when we were taken to the site by Sr. Ariel Esquinca, who had not previously told anyone of his discovery in order to prevent the destruction of the stones and the probable looting of the archaeological zone. The rock carvings are situated approximately 1 km west of the Río Pijijiapan, which passes along the edge of the town of the same name ([1]). One reaches the site by following the road to the ranchería El Llanito, now the Colonia Guadalupe, on whose lands it is located. The terrain is somewhat broken, as it lies on the boundary between the first foothills of the Sierra Madre and the coastal plain. Except for one small mound, surface remains of habitation are not visible. The rock carvings are distributed on three large granite boulders, each sculptured on its smoothest face ([1]). On all of them, the relief was achieved by lowering the surface around the silhouette between 1 and 3 cm. The secondary features were made by means of incisions.