Highly expressive ancient puppets found in Salvadorian pyramid

Yahoo

06-03-2025

A collection of 2,400-year-old ceramic puppets found atop a Salvadorian pyramid are forcing archaeologists to rethink the country's historical connection with its Central American neighbors. Three of the figures were made of fine clay and had adjustable heads with holes in them that may have been controlled using a string, much like a marionette puppet. They also had uniquely carved faces with expressions that seem to change depending on the angle they are viewed from.
These remarkably well-preserved 'Bolinas' figures are similar to others found at the Mayan burial site Tak'alik Ab'aj in Guatemala. The researchers argue these connections suggest the culture behind the puppets in El Salvador may have communicated and interacted with others in the region. The findings were published this week in the journal Antiquity.
'This discovery contradicts some prevailing notion about El Salvador's cultural backwardness or isolation in ancient times,' University of Warsaw archaeologist and paper author Jan Szymański said in a statement. 'It reveals the existence of vibrant and far-reaching communities capable of exchanging ideas with remarkably distant places.'
Bolinas figurines refer to various human-modeled statues created throughout the Middle and Late Preclassic (1000–350 BCE and 350 BCE–250 CE) along the coast of Guatemala and western El Salvador. These figures come in various sizes and are normally made of light cream or reddish-brown paste. The vast majority of previously discovered Bolinas figures depict females wearing clothes. That wasn't the case for these findings. All three of the larger figures recently found in El Salvador were nude, and researchers suspect one of them is male—a rarity for the medium.
The figurines were uncovered on the top of the San Isidro pyramid structure in El Salvador's western Department of Sonsonate. The area had not previously been excavated. Researchers say they made their way to a part of the ancient pyramid that resembled a funeral depot but with no human remains inside. Instead, they stumbled upon five figurines which they carbon-dated to around 400 BCE. That date roughly corresponds to the Middle Preclassic era when nearby cultures, like the Maya, were on the brink of creating large hierarchical societies.
Three of the largest figurines were roughly a foot tall, while the other two were around 18 centimeters tall. The taller figurines—one depicting a male and two depicting females—had adjustable heads with matching sockets that connected them to their bodies. At first glance, the objects resemble dolls or even more advanced action figures with movable parts. And yet, researchers say their clay bodies were likely too delicate to function as toys. Each of them also had small holes drilled into them, large enough for a string to pass through. Researchers believe the figurines' creators used a string to control them, allowing them to move and rotate their heads. Rather than toys, researchers believe the figurines were more likely an early type of puppet used in ritualistic funerary performances.
The puppets' faces were intricately carved and feature visible tongues and ornate tattoos. Researchers say their facial expressions also look noticeably different depending on the angle. From above, the figurines almost appear to be grinning, but the face looks disdainful when viewed head-on. The expressions appear fearful when viewed from below. Szymański believes these variations were intentional.
'This is a conscious design, perhaps meant to enhance the gamut of ritual performances the puppets could have been used in,' Szymański said.
And while the pressured puppets lacked any carved jewelry or hair, Szymański told Science he believes it's possible these large figurines were also once adorned in wigs and clothes made of cloth or straw. The figurines' creators, Szymański argues, may have dressed them up in costumes intended to represent different characters, either real or mythic.
'They are clay actors,' Szymański told Science. 'When you hold them in your hand, sometimes they even look creepy because of their vivid expressions,'
'You shift your gaze just a little bit and it seems like, oof, this thing almost moved,' he added.
The puppet discovery sheds new light on an area of Central America that has historically been difficult for archaeologists to research. The country's densely populated areas make it more difficult to conduct excavations than in some of its more sparsely inhabited neighbors. Various large-scale volcanic eruptions over the past two thousand years have also damaged or destroyed many Pre-Columbian artifacts and ruins.
'Very little is known about the identities and ethnolinguistic affiliations of the creators of ancient settlements that predate the arrival of Europeans in the early 16th century,' Szymański said 'This gets worse the further back in time we look.'
But the figurines' close resemblance to those found in Guatemala suggests that a shared culture and civilization may have existed in both areas. Other artifacts found in the San Isidro pyramid structure, such as jade pendants, have also been discovered at excavation sites in modern Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama.