18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

2,400-Year-Old Puppets with Dramatic Expressions Uncovered: May Have Played Key Roles in Rituals atop El Salvador’s Pyramid

A recent archaeological find in El Salvador has unveiled a captivating glimpse into the rituals of the region’s Indigenous people, featuring a set of ancient puppets that challenge our understanding of Mesoamerican performances during the Middle Preclassic Period.

These intriguing puppets were unearthed by a team of researchers led by archaeologist Jan Szymański from the University of Warsaw, and they are believed to have played a significant role in public rituals, reflecting the cultural practices of the Indigenous people of the region.

Three of the dolls are about a foot tall (30cm) while two others are about 10cm (0.3ft) and 18cm (0.6ft), researchers say.

All of the discovered figurines feature open mouths, with some displaying visible tongues, while the three largest possess detachable heads with small holes in their necks and at the tops of their heads. Archaeologist Jan Szymański quickly realized that by running a string through these holes, the figurines could be manipulated to turn their heads from side to side, creating the illusion that they were singing, chanting, or talking. This suggests that they may have functioned as ancient marionette-like puppets, according to researchers who reported their findings this week in the journal Antiquity.

Art historian Julia Guernsey from the University of Texas at Austin has described the theory that the figurines functioned as puppets as “superprovocative.” Radiocarbon dating and ceramic analysis indicate that these intriguing objects were likely buried atop the pyramid around 400 B.C.E., during the Middle Preclassic period—a time when Mesoamerican cultures, including the nearby Maya, were on the verge of developing writing and establishing complex hierarchical societies. In contrast, Szymański suggests that the San Isidro site may have maintained a more egalitarian social structure during this transformative era.

The location of the tableau and the hollow figurine body in the excavation on top of Cerrito 1, north at the top. Credit: M. Sokołowski / PASI
The location of the tableau and the hollow figurine body in the excavation on top of Cerrito 1, north at the top. Credit: M. Sokołowski / PASI

The figures are classified as “Bolinas figures,” a style that has been discovered at various archaeological sites, although most have been found fragmented or discarded in ancient refuse piles. A notable find of intact figures took place in 2012 at Tak’alik Ab’aj, a Maya site in Guatemala, where figurines with movable heads were unearthed as part of a funerary offering. This discovery implies that these figures may have served as symbolic representations of a journey to the underworld.

The figures were arranged in an apparent ritual configuration. Although time and the action of tree roots may have altered their original position, archaeologist Barbara Arroyo notes that their general westward orientation could link them to the symbolism of sunset and death in the Mesoamerican worldview.

The Bolinas figurines from Tak’alik Ab’aj and other archaeological sites feature intricate decorations, including skirts and hairstyles incised into the clay. Notably, one figurine from Tak’alik Ab’aj was adorned with a detachable jade earring fitted into a hole in its earlobe. These similarities lead Szymański and other archaeologists to speculate that the San Isidro puppets may have once been dressed in clothing made of cloth or straw, as well as adorned with miniature jewelry and even wigs.

Szymański proposes that altering the attire of these figures may have enabled them to portray different characters in various performances, effectively making them “clay actors.” He emphasizes the striking visual effect of the figurines’ expressions, which seem to come alive depending on the angle from which they are viewed. The archaeologist notes that when held in hand, the expressions can be so vivid that it appears as though the figures are on the verge of movement.

Three of the five figürines have movable heads with a protrusion and socket allowing for movement. Credit: M. Sokołowski / PASI
Three of the five figürines have movable heads with a protrusion and socket allowing for movement. Credit: M. Sokołowski / PASI

Although certain performances might have had educational or entertainment value similar to contemporary puppet theaters, the figures’ final positioning on top of a pyramid implies their vital role in religious rituals. Szymański believes these figures could have been involved in different performances before their deposition in this sacred setting.

To gain further insights into the performances and rituals associated with the puppets, as well as the puppeteers who operated them, Szymański’s team is actively continuing their excavation of the pyramid. He suggests that San Isidro may have functioned as a trading hub, facilitating the exchange of cultures, ideas, and languages from Central America and beyond.

In contrast to the nearby Maya societies that were establishing monarchies, San Isidro appears to have organized itself without a centralized ruler. Szymański speculates that the San Isidro puppets may have represented different languages in their various roles, highlighting the diversity of their egalitarian community, where multiple voices could be expressed.

Science

Szymański, J., & Prejs, G. (2025). Of puppets and puppeteers: Preclassic clay figurines from San Isidro, El Salvador. Antiquity, 1–17. doi:10.15184/aqy.2025.37

Cover Image credit: J. Przedwojewska-Szymańska/PASI; Antiquity

Related Articles

A Medieval Barbican and a Network of Passages Uncovered in Western Slovakia’s town of Trenčín

5 December 2024

5 December 2024

A medieval barbican (fortified outpost or fortified gateway), and a network of passages that acted as a sewerage system have...

Researchers have found in miniature ceramic bottles evidence of the oldest known use of cosmetics in the Balkans

14 July 2021

14 July 2021

In miniature ceramic bottles from excavations ascribed to the Lasinja Culture in the Southeast Prealps and the Vinča Culture in...

A stunning fresco depicting Helen of Troy is revealed during excavations at the ancient Roman city

11 April 2024

11 April 2024

Archeologists have uncovered remarkably preserved ‘fresco’ paintings on a wall in the banqueting room of a large house along Via...

Archaeologists Uncovered a Tile Workshop From the First Century in Corsica

3 December 2024

3 December 2024

Archaeologists from the French National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research (INRAP) excavations on the east coast of Corsica have uncovered...

Archaeologists Find the “Lost” House of the Last Anglo-Saxon King Depicted on the Bayeux Tapestry

28 January 2025

28 January 2025

A team from Newcastle University and the University of Exeter have uncovered evidence that a house in England is the...

New fibula types discovered at prehistoric Kopilo graves in Bosnia

26 August 2022

26 August 2022

An archaeological dig at Kopilo, a hill settlement founded around 1300 BC about 70 miles west of Sarajevo, has discovered...

Archaeologists unearths Unique Tomb of 6th Century BC Egyptian Commander at the archaeological area of ​​Abu Sir

24 July 2022

24 July 2022

The Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities announced on July 15 that a team of Czech archaeologists, while excavating near the Giza...

Ukraine says Russian forces stole Scythian treasures from Melitopol Museum

11 May 2022

11 May 2022

Invading Russian troops have stolen items of ancient Scythian gold and other historical and cultural valuables that were stored in...

New studies confirm that there was indeed a shipyard at Lothal, the commercial center of the Harappan civilization and world’s oldest port

6 September 2024

6 September 2024

Since the discovery of Harappan sites at Lothal, located about 30 kilometers inland from the coast of the Gulf of...

Derinkuyu: A Subterranean Marvel of Ancient Engineering with 18 Levels and Capacity for 20,000 Inhabitants

2 May 2025

2 May 2025

Beneath the sun-drenched plains of Cappadocia, where otherworldly “fairy chimney” rock formations pierce the sky, lies a secret world carved...

Surprisingly High-Altitude Silk Road Cities Discovered in Uzbek Mountains

25 October 2024

25 October 2024

Archaeologists have discovered two lost medieval cities in the eastern mountains of Uzbekistan that were important hubs on the ancient...

A newly Discovered Church in Sudan could be a Cathedral

2 June 2021

2 June 2021

Archaeologists have found the remains of the largest church known from medieval Nubia in old Dongola (Sudan). Dongola was the...

New Study: Middle Paleolithic Human Diet was More Diverse than Previously Thought

30 November 2023

30 November 2023

In a newly published study, archaeologists from the Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Paleoenvironment at the University of Tübingen...

The new type of Silla tombs discovered in Gyeongju, South Korea

27 June 2024

27 June 2024

Archaeologists have made a groundbreaking discovery in the ancient capital of the Silla Kingdom (57 BC-AD 935) in the ancient...

In the Black Sea, there is a “Ship Graveyard” with 2,500 years of wrecked ships

15 February 2022

15 February 2022

The Black Sea is the inland sea lying between Europe and Asia. Blacksea is located in Eurasia, surrounded by Europe,...