San Bartolo-Xultun Regional Archaeological Project

PRASBX investigates two nearby sites in the northeastern Petén region that had a long history spanning the rise and fall of Classic Maya kingdoms (ca. 400 BCE – CE 900). San Bartolo has the earliest evidence of Maya writing yet discovered dating to the 4th century BCE and Xultun was an important city led by a powerful dynasty during the 5th-9th centuries CE. Today, the large urban center and its network of smaller sites have been reclaimed by tropical forest, a protected ecological zone designated the Maya Biosphere Reserve.

Although Xultun was known to archaeologists 100 years ago, very little research had been done at the site. In 2001, the discovery of murals at the previously undocumented site of San Bartolo initiated the first focused scientific investigations into the dynamic history of the region. Xultun and nearby San Bartolo continue to reveal secrets and yield new discoveries about ancient Maya life in Petén.