DOS PILAS

ancient Mayan capital, west-central Guatemala, situated near the Salinas River, about 5 miles (8 km) east of the border with Mexico. Dos Pilas was the centre of a Mayan kingdom that at the height of its hegemony covered an area of some 1,500 square miles (3,885 square km). Archaeologists working at the Dos Pilas site in 1991 discovered the tomb of a kingas yet known only as Ruler 2 (reigned c. 698725)who, together with his two successors, is believed by some archaeologists to have been a significant figure in the decline of Mayan civilization. Excavations at Dos Pilas and nearby sites have revealed a significant number of what appear to be ramparts and moats unconnected to ceremonial and agricultural activities and seemingly much more labour-intensive than the earlier ceremonial structures. From this evidence some scholars have concluded that intense and relentless warfare, whether caused by or resulting in ecological collapse, may have led to the rather sudden collapse of the Mayan culture around AD 900.