Copán is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization in the Copán Department of western Honduras, not far from the border with Guatemala. It is one of the most important sites of the Maya civilization, which was not excavated until the 19th century. The ruined citadel and imposing public squares reveal the three main stages of development before the city was abandoned in the early 10th century.
This ancient Maya city mirrors the beauty of the physical landscapes in which it flourished—a fertile, well-watered mountain valley in western Honduras. Situated within the fertile alluvial basin of the Copán River at an elevation of 600 metres (1,970 ft) above sea level, the ancient city occupied a strategic ecological corridor at the southeastern periphery of Mesoamerica. Serving as the capital of a major Classic period kingdom from the 5th to 9th centuries AD, Copán functioned as a critical geopolitical and commercial bridge between the lowland Maya polities to the north and non-Maya populations of the Isthmo-Colombian cultural region to the south and east
Copán was occupied for more than two thousand years, from the Early Preclassic period to the Postclassic. The city developed a distinctive sculptural style within the tradition of the lowland Maya, perhaps to emphasize the Maya ethnicity of the city's rulers..
The city has a historical record that spans the greater part of the Classic period and has been reconstructed in detail by archaeologists and epigraphers. Copán was a powerful city ruling a vast kingdom within the southern Maya area. The city suffered a major political disaster in AD 738 when Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil, one of the greatest kings in Copán's dynastic history, was captured and executed by his former vassal, the king of Quiriguá.; ; . This unexpected defeat resulted in a 17-year hiatus at the city, during which time Copán may have been subject to Quiriguá in a reversal of fortunes..
A significant portion of the eastern side of the acropolis was eroded away by the Copán River; the river has since been diverted to protect the site from further damage.
As one of the most important sites in Maya history, and because of its outstanding, well-preserved architecture, Copán was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980, and the site was designated a cultural monument by the Honduran Government in 1982.
Names It is thought likely that the ancient name of Copán was Oxwitik (), meaning the "Three Witiks", although the meaning of the word witik itself remains obscure.
Location
Copán is in western Honduras close to the border with Guatemala. It lies within the municipality of Copán Ruinas in the department of Copán. It is in a fertile valley among foothills at above mean sea level. The ruins of the site core of the city are from the modern village of Copán Ruinas, which is built on the site of a major complex dating to the Classic period..
In the Preclassic period the floor of the Copán Valley was undulating, swampy and prone to seasonal flooding. In the Early Classic, the inhabitants flattened the valley floor and undertook construction projects to protect the city's architecture from the effects of flooding.
Copán had a major influence on regional centres across western and central Honduras, stimulating the introduction of Mesoamerican characteristics to local elites.
Population
At the peak of its power in the Late Classic, the kingdom of Copán had a population of at least 20,000 and covered an area of over . The greater Copán area consisting of the populated areas of the valley covered about a quarter of the size of the city of Tikal. It is estimated that the peak population in central Copán was between 6000 and 9000 in an area of , with a further 9,000 to 12,000 inhabitants occupying the periphery—an area of . Additionally, there was an estimated rural population of 3,000 to 4,000 in a area of the Copán Valley, giving an estimated total population of 18,000 to 25,000 people in the valley during the Late Classic period.
History Little is known of the rulers of Copán before the founding of a new dynasty with its origins at Tikal in the early 5th century AD, although the city's origins can be traced back to the Preclassic period.; . After this, Copán became one of the more powerful Maya city states and was a regional power in the southern Maya region. However, it suffered a catastrophic defeat at the hands of its former vassal state Quirigua in 738, when the long-ruling king Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil was captured and beheaded by Quirigua's ruler K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat (Cauac Sky). Although this was a major setback, Copán's rulers began to build monumental structures again within a few decades.
The area of Copán continued to be occupied after the last major ceremonial structures and royal monuments were erected, but the population declined in the 8th and 9th centuries from perhaps over 20,000 in the city to less than 5,000. This decrease in population took over four centuries to actually show signs of collapse, showing the stability of this site even after the fall of the ruling dynasties and royal families. The ceremonial center was long abandoned and the surrounding valley home to only a few farming hamlets at the time of the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century.
Rulers
References to the predynastic rulers of Copán are found in later texts, but none of these texts predate the refounding of Copán in AD 426..
Name (or nickname) Ruled Dynasticsuccession no. Alternative namesK'inich Yax K'uk' Mo'426 – 1Great-Sun First Quetzal MacawK'inich Popol Hol2Great-Sunname unknown3Ruler 3Ku Ix4K'altuun Hix, Tuun K'ab' Hixname unknown5Ruler 5Muyal Jol6Ruler 6B'alam Nehn504–5447Jaguar Mirror; Waterlily-JaguarWil Ohl K'inich532–5518Ruler 8; Head on EarthSak-Lu551–5539Ruler 9Tzi-B'alam553–57810Moon JaguarK'ak' Chan Yopaat578–62811B'utz' Chan; Smoke SerpentK’ahk’ Uti’ Witz’ K'awiil628–69512Smoke Jaguar; Smoke ImixUaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil695–7381318 RabbitAjaw K'ak' Joplaj Chan K'awiil738–74914Smoke MonkeyAjaw K'ak' Yipyaj Chan K'awiil749–76315Smoke Shell; Smoke SquirrelYax Pasaj Chan Yopaat763 – after 81016Yax PacUkit Took82217?–
Predynastic history The fertile Copán River valley was long a site of agriculture before the first known stone architecture was built in the region about the 9th century BC. The city was important before its refounding by a foreign elite; mentions of the predynastic history of Copán are found in later texts, but none of these predates the refounding of the city in AD 426. There is an inscription that refers to the year 321 BC, but no text explains the significance of this date.. An event at Copán is linked to another event that happened 208 days before in AD 159 at an unknown location that is also mentioned on a stela from Tikal, suggesting that it is a location somewhere in the Petén Basin, possibly the great Preclassic Maya city of El Mirador. This AD 159 date is mentioned in several texts and is linked to a figure known as "Foliated Ajaw". This same person is mentioned on the carved skull of a peccary recovered from Tomb 1, where he is said to perform an action with a stela in AD 376.
Regional Trade Networks and Motagua Corridor Copán's position in the fertile Copán River valley allowed the polity to function as a crucial trade hub linking the Maya lowlands with non-Maya cultures in southern Central America. The polity controlled access to the upper Motagua River valley, a primary source of jadeite and obsidian, which were transported along riverine networks to the Caribbean coast and inland Maya centers. +Geographic and Material Exchange Matrix of Classic CopánTrade CommoditySource Region & Transit RouteSocioeconomic & Ritual SignificanceJadeiteMotagua River Valley; fluvial transport along the Motagua corridor to the Copán Valley and northern lowlands.Reserved for royal regalia, elite burials, and ceremonial offerings symbolizing cosmic vitality and political authority.Obsidian (Ixtepeque)Guatemalan Highlands (Ixtepeque); overland trails connecting the southern highlands to the Copán basin.Utility stone for prismatic blades and ceremonial eccentric flints placed in dedicatory temple caches.Spondylus ShellsPacific and Caribbean coasts; long-distance riverine and coastal trade networks.Associated with water cosmology, underworld iconography, and high-status mortuary offerings.CacaoAlluvial lowlands of the Ulúa and Copán Valleys; inter-valley exchange networks.Currency of exchange, ceremonial beverage for dynastic enthronement, and diplomatic gifting.Ulúa Polychrome CeramicsUlúa Valley (Northern Honduras): eastern trade linking non-Maya workshops with the Copán Acropolis.Elite feasting vessels demonstrating cross-cultural interaction with non-Maya Southeastern neighbors.
K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' and K'inich Popol Hol
The city was refounded by K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo', establishing it as the capital of a new Maya kingdom. This coup was apparently organized and launched from Tikal. Texts record the arrival of a warrior named K'uk' Mo' Ajaw who was installed upon the throne of the city in AD 426 and given a new royal name, K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' and the ochk'in kaloomte "Lord of the West" title used a generation earlier by Siyaj K'ak', a general from the great metropolis of Teotihuacan who had decisively intervened in the politics of the central Petén. K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' was probably from Tikal and was likely to have been sponsored by Siyaj Chan K'awill II, the 16th ruler in the dynastic succession of Tikal. K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' may have legitimized his claim to rulership by marrying into the old Copán royal family, evidenced from the remains of his presumed widow. Bone analysis of her remains indicates that she was local to Copán.; . After the establishment of the new kingdom of Copán, the city remained closely allied with Tikal. The hieroglyphic text on Copán Altar Q describes the lord being elevated to kingship with the receipt of his royal scepter. The ceremonies involved in the founding of the Copán dynasty also included the installation of a subordinate king at Quiriguá.
A text from Tikal mentions K'uk' Mo' and has been dated to AD 406, 20 years before K'uk' Mo' Ajaw founded the new dynasty at Copán. Both names are likely to refer to the same individual originally from Tikal. Although none of the hieroglyphic texts that mention the founding of the new Copán dynasty describe how K'uk' Mo' arrived at the city, indirect evidence suggests that he conquered the city by military means. On Altar Q he is depicted as a Teotihuacano warrior with goggle eyes and a war serpent shield. When he arrived at Copán he initiated the construction of various structures, including one temple in the talud-tablero style typical of Teotihuacan and another with inset corners and apron moldings that are characteristic of Tikal. These strong links with both the Maya and Central Mexican cultures suggest that he was at least a Mexicanized Maya or possibly even from Teotihuacan. The dynasty founded by king K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' ruled the city for four centuries and included sixteen kings plus a probable pretender who would have been seventeenth in line. Several monuments have survived that were dedicated by K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' and by his heir..
K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' died between AD 435 and AD 437. In 1995 a tomb underneath the talud-tablero Hunal temple was discovered by a team of archaeologists led by Robert Sharer and David Sedat. The tomb contained the skeleton of an elderly man with rich offerings and evidence of battle wounds. The remains have been identified as those of K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' due to their location underneath a sequence of seven buildings erected in his honor. Bone analysis has identified the remains as being those of someone foreign to Copán.