Now largely swallowed by marshland, this monumental site must once have served as a gathering place of considerable importance — an inference drawn, in the first instance, from its sheer extent. Beneath the sloping ground, excavators have identified a series of tiered surfaces that appear to have accommodated seating, and on a scale sufficient for a very substantial assembly.
What actually took place here remains obscure. Trials have been proposed; so too have ceremonies of a public character, though the evidence for either is largely circumstantial. What is beyond dispute is that the site was designed to be looked upon by many at once.
A further and more puzzling feature is the intricate network of tunnels and chambers that runs beneath the structure. Some have classified these as burial spaces. Others, noting the absence of any human remains, have argued for storage — or, more speculatively still, for private quarters concealed from public view. The purpose of these passages, like that of the site above them, has not been established.
