Mysterious 2,400-Year-Old Puppets Unearthed in El Salvador

SAN ISIDRO, EL SALVADOR—According to a Live Science report, ceramic figurines found at the site of San Isidro have changed what scholars know about pre-Columbian societies in El Salvador. The five statuettes date to around 400 b.c. and resemble human forms––four female and one male. They were found atop the largest pyramidal structure at the site in a rich deposit that was similar to a funerary offering. However, no human remains were present. This suggests that they may have instead been used in important public rituals. Three of the figurines have articulated heads that make them look like modern toy dolls. Researchers believe that they could be a kind of ancient puppet positioned in a scene or tableau that was meant to convey some sort of message that is now lost. One of the puppets’ most intriguing features are their dramatic facial expressions, which seem to change depending on the angle from which they are viewed. “Seen from above they appear almost grinning, but when looked at from a level angle they turn angry or disdainful, or become scared when seen from below,” said University of Warsaw archaeologist Jan Syzmański. “This is a conscious design, perhaps meant to enhance the gamut of ritual performances the puppets could have been used in.” What has surprised archaeologists is that this style of puppet is also found in southern Guatemala, while other objects found at San Isidro, such as jade pendants, match those that are known from areas in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. It was largely believed that this part of El Salvador was culturally isolated from the rest of Central America, but this new evidence suggests that inhabitants of San Isidro took part in long-distance interaction networks and shared ritual traditions across the region. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Antiquity. To read about the fraught coexistence of Indigenous peoples and Spanish colonists at the country's first capital, go to "Letter from El Salvador: Uneasy Allies."