page_title: El Chal
section_title: Patio D
hierarchical_section_title: El Chal / Site description / Central Sector / Acropolis / Patio D
caption_attribution_description: English: Unexcavated Maya pyramid on a basal platform at El Chal, Peten, Guatemala. Español: Pirámide maya no-excavada sobre una plataforma basal en El Chal, Petén, Guatemala.
context_page_description: El Chal is a pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site located in the upper San Juan River valley of the southeastern Petén Basin region, Guatemala. The site is situated approximately 30 kilometres to the north of the modern town of Dolores, near the contemporary village settlement of the same name, lying some 600 metres to the south.
  El Chal was occupied from approximately 300 BC through to 1300 AD, although some Middle Preclassic activity has been identified in the acropolis. The Late Preclassic occupation of the city was concentrated around an E-Group ceremonial complex some 2 kilometres north of the later site core. The site's major period of occupation was during the Late Classic Period, when it was an important centre in the southeastern Petén region. Among the structures at the site is a large quadrangular residential complex, a structural type that is uncommonly found at Southern Maya lowland sites although there is a smaller one with similar characteristics at Machaquilá.
  As of 2010 very little restorative work has been undertaken at the site. The archaeological site is protected by the Guatemalan Instituto de Antropología e Historia.
context_section_description: Terrace 2 Structure 1 is on the north side of Patio D. It is a low rectangular platform measuring 2 metres (6.6 ft) high. Its walls rest upon the last surface layer of the patio and the structure's surface was littered with abundant Terminal Classic ceramic remains. A sunken stairway climbed the structure at a point 10 metres (33 ft) from the southeast corner. The tread of the steps measured 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) deep while the risers measured 0.2 metres (0.66 ft) high. During the Late Classic this structure apparently had an administrative function. However, by the Terminal Classic it was used as a domestic building, as evidenced by the abundant ceramics and stone artefacts recovered, the latter include a fragment of a metate milling stone, an obsidian knife and two flint knives.
  Terrace 2 Structure 2 is on the east side of Patio D. It was a 9-metre (30 ft) tall pyramidal platform that did not possess a summit superstructure. The upper east side of the pyramid has collapsed and looters' trenches on the west side were filled in by IDAEH in 1991. The walls possessed taluds and excavations uncovered traces of red paint. The stairway faced west onto Patio D, the treads measured 0.2 metres (0.66 ft) and the risers 0.25 metres (0.82 ft). The stairway projected 1.3 metres (4.3 ft) into the patio from the pyramid. A burial cist was found near the front of the pyramid, it was labelled as Burial 264 and was dated to the Late Classic. The platform had five layers of stucco flooring. Material recovered during excavation of the stairway dated to the Terminal Classic.
  Terrace 2 Structure 3 encloses the west side of Patio D. Structure 3 does not face onto Patio D but rather is part of the Terminal Classic construction activity that extended Terrace 2 with the addition of Patio G. The structure measured 7.8 metres (26 ft) from east to west. Excavated artefacts around the base have been dated to the Late and Terminal Classic. The stairway is on the west side, facing onto Patio G. The structure is believed to have been built in a single burst of activity in the Terminal Classic. It had two stepped levels and a north-south stairway was identified upon the summit of the structure.
caption: Unrestored pyramid on the acropolis
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