Archaeologists digging in Central America recently uncovered strange 2,400-year-old clay puppets in an unexpected place.
The discoveries, which were found on top of El Salvador’s San Isidro pyramid, were published in an article entitled “Of puppets and puppeteers: Preclassic clay figurines from San Isidro, El Salvador,” on Mar. 5. The ancient Mesoamerican puppets date back between 410 and 380 B.C.
Pictures show the puppets possessing eerie open-mouthed facial expressions. The largest puppets of the group are around a foot long, and are “naked and devoid of hair or jewelry,” while the smallest ones are “modeled with locks of hair on their foreheads and earspools in the lobes,” according to the study.
Researchers determined that the artifacts were puppets because of the holes in their heads, which string could easily fit through.
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Creepy figurines and puppets were recently found at the top of a pyramid in El Salvador. (J. Przedwojewska-Szymańska/PASI via Cambridge University Press)
“The three larger figurines have articulated, adjustable heads, facilitated by conical protrusions on the necks and matching sockets in the base of each head,” the study described. “Each socket has two holes drilled through to the top of the head, and each neck protrusion has one horizontal hole and a shallow vertical canal on each side, allowing a string to be passed through the neck and tied on the top of the head.”
The figurines may have served a variety of purposes, the study argues, including “being, effectively, marionettes or puppets in re-enactments of certain scenes, both static and dynamic.”
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The figurines date back 2,400 years, according to archaeologists. (G. Prejs/PASI via Cambridge University Press)
Though the puppets were discovered naked, researchers believe that they once wore costumes, as earrings for similar figurines have been discovered at Mesoamerican sites in the past.
One of the researchers, Jan Szymański, told Science that the puppets are even creepier in person.
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“They are clay actors,” the University of Warsaw archaeologist said. “When you hold them in your hand, sometimes they even look creepy because of their vivid expressions.”
The figurines were all found unclothed, though they may have worn costumes at one time. (J. Przedwojewska-Szymańska/PASI via Cambridge University Press)
“You shift your gaze just a little bit and it seems like, oof, this thing almost moved.”
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Szymański also noted that the puppets’ final resting place at the top of the pyramid suggests that they may have been ritually important.
“They can be employed in a variety of different performances before being finally deposited as something really, really special,” the researcher said. “I would say a tomb, but we don’t have the body.”
Though researchers are unclear about how exactly the puppets were used, the excavation of the pyramid is still ongoing – and archaeologists are still looking for answers.
The figurines were found with peculiar sockets that could have been used for performances. (J. Przedwojewska-Szymańska/PASI via Cambridge University Press)
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“Insights may still be revealed regarding the relationship between senders and receivers, offering a glimpse of the ‘puppeteers,'” the paper concludes.
