Mexican archaeologists reveal the remains of what they believe is the last recorded Mayan rebel stronghold, known for its century-long Spanish colonization.
According to historical records, Sak-Bahlán, or “the land of the white Jaguar”, was the final refuge of the Lakandon-Ch’ol people, who escaped to Lacandon Jungle by the Spanish capital Lakam-tun in 1586 until the Spanish lasted for 110 years. 1695. The stronghold was soon invaded and renamed Nuestra Señorade Dolores (“Holy Virgin Pain”).
Its society was weakened, the site fell into disrepair, and by 1721 the site became obscure. Although its location is lost, documents and letters written during epilepsy have taken its legacy (especially among the descendants of Lakandon-Ch’ol) as a symbol of indigenous resistance to the Spanish conquest.
“Lost” may no longer be the right word. In a recent announcement, the multinational company Sakh-Balalan Archaeological Project said it may have rediscovered the long-standing site. The project is co-directed by Dr. Brent Woodfill of Winthrop University in South Carolina and Dr. Yuko Shiratori of Rissho University in Japan.
The announcement from Inah (National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico) attributes the discovery to the essential guidance of Josuhé Lozada Toledo, an expert at the Inah Chiapas Center. Lozada Toledo relies on a combination of GIS technology and the work of Spanish Friar Diego de Rivas to narrow down searches in Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve, a protected area of Chiapas today.
He also considered practical considerations such as cargo that a person could reasonably cross accessible terrain and estimated distances to travel from Rivas.
“By combining all these variables together, I could …get about the range of where the Sak-Bahlán site is located,” Lozada Toledo said. The team eventually arrived at a location at the confluence of the Jatat and Ixcan Rivers near the modern border between Mexico and Guatemala.
“This is the most difficult trip ever in my life, but in the end, we found archaeological evidence, right where I marked it,” the archaeologist said.
