Copán Photographs

Archaeologists digging in the excavation tunnels deep within Temple #16 unexpectedly discovered a slightly smaller and elaborately sculptured ancient temple still in original condition. It had been build by the 10th Ruler of Copan, "Moon Jaguar," and had been dedicated in AD 571, long before Copan's 16th Ruler "Yax Pahsaj" consturcted Temple #16 over the newly discovered temple. In most instances, when a new Maya king constructs a larger structure over one built by the previous ruler, it causes considerable damage to the earlier structure and they were often dismantled before new construction began. But in this instance, the earlier temple's exterior walls had been carefully covered and preserved with soft soil, protecting them from any damage. Because there were traces of the original bright rose coloring still showing on the buried temple, archaeologists decided to name it "Rosalila." It is the only known example of a temple structure surviving intact at Copán.A narrow illuminated path inside the tunnel entrance now allows visitors to walk around the footprint of Temple #16 just inside its exterior walls, allowing visitors to view sections of the recently unearthed "Rosalila" temple.Having discovered this amazing Maya art treasure in good condition, archaeologists and the Honduran Goverment wanted to preserve Temple #16 as it is, but also allow visitors to view the newly discovered temple as it once appeared. A creative solution was conceived by making lightweight plaster castings of its exterior walls while it was still underneath Temple #16. The team of archaeologists then used the finished castings to reconstruct a facsimile of "Rosalila" where visitors could view an ancient Maya temple in its original bright colors and appearance. To enhance this opportunity, funds were raised to construct a spacious modern Copán Sculptures Museum in 1996 just outside the Copán ruins in which to house the reconstructed "Rosalila" temple. In addition, the new museum also exhibits and preserves many of Copán's other rare sculptures, altars, and temple facades. When a monolith or altar is about to be moved into the new Copán Sculptures Museum, a casting is carefully mae of the original carved stone and the cast duplicate is made weatherproof and painted to look like the original sculpture, then is put in the original's place within the ruins.考古学家在第16号神庙深处的发掘隧道中作业时，意外发现了一座体量略小、雕刻繁复精美且保存完好的古代神庙。该神庙由科潘（Copán）第十位统治者“月亮美洲豹（Moon Jaguar）”主持修建，于公元571年举行落成仪式，其建造时间远早于科潘第十六位统治者“亚克斯·帕萨赫（Yax Pahsaj）”在这座新发现的神庙之上修建第16号神庙之时。 在大多数情况下，当玛雅新君在前代统治者修建的建筑之上修建更大的结构时，会对原有建筑造成严重破坏，且新建筑动工前往往会将原有建筑拆毁。但此次发掘的情况却截然不同：早期神庙的外墙被松软土层妥善覆盖封存，使其免受任何损毁。由于这座被掩埋的神庙仍留存有原本鲜亮的玫红色纹饰痕迹，考古学家遂将其命名为“罗萨莉拉（Rosalila）”。它是目前已知科潘地区唯一一座完整留存的神庙建筑遗存。 如今，隧道入口处设有一条带照明的狭窄通道，游客可沿第16号神庙外墙内侧绕行其基底，从而一睹新近出土的“罗萨莉拉”神庙的部分遗迹。鉴于这座保存完好的玛雅艺术珍品被成功发掘，考古学家与洪都拉斯政府（Honduran Government）希望在保留第16号神庙原状的同时，也能让游客一睹这座新发现神庙的原本风貌。为此，团队提出了一项创新方案：在这座神庙仍被覆盖在第16号神庙下方时，对其外墙制作轻质石膏铸模。考古团队随后利用完成的铸模复刻出“罗萨莉拉”神庙的复制品，游客可在此观赏到色彩鲜亮、原貌完整的古玛雅神庙。 为优化这一展示体验，相关方于1996年募资在科潘遗址外围修建了一座宽敞的现代化科潘雕塑博物馆（Copán Sculptures Museum），用于安置复刻完成的“罗萨莉拉”神庙。此外，这座新博物馆还展出并保存了大量科潘地区其他珍稀的雕刻品、祭坛及神庙外立面遗存。当有独石纪念碑或祭坛需迁入这座新博物馆时，工作人员会先对原雕刻石材制作精细铸模，将铸模复制品做防水处理并仿原雕刻上色，随后将复制品安置在遗址中原物的位置。