A 1,500-year-old Teotihuacan settlement has been discovered in Mexico City.

Archaeologists have unearthed a 1,500-year-old Teotihuacan village in Mexico City, featuring numerous ceramic artifacts and three human burials, as reported by Mexico’s National Institute of History and Anthropology.

Excavations conducted from March to June revealed remnants of several buildings, including drainage systems, post holes, stone lines, floors, and a well within the ancient settlement.

The remains of one child and two adults were found alongside Teotihuacan-style polished bowls with ring-shaped bases.

At its peak in the 6th century, the Teotihuacan civilization, located about 50 kilometers northeast of modern-day Mexico City, wielded immense influence over Mesoamerica, surpassing even the Aztec Empire in power and reach.

Experts have dated the village to around 450-650 AD, based on ceramic evidence, aligning it with the peak period of Teotihuacan's influence.

Archaeologist Francisco González Rul first identified the settlement between 1960 and 1964, but recent discoveries have now confirmed its existence, as stated by excavation leaders Juan Carlos Campos Varela and Mara Abigail Becerra Amezcua.

González Rul suggested that the village was likely inhabited by fisherman-gatherers who relied on the resources of Lake Texcoco, a vast lake that was later drained in the 17th century.

The excavation supported the initial hypothesis, but newly uncovered artifacts indicate that the village also engaged in artisanal ceramic production. This is evidenced by fragments of modeled figurines, green stone items, shells, funerary offerings, and various obsidian and flint projectile points, according to Campos Varela and Becerra Amezcua.

The discovery of these artifacts leads archaeologists to believe the rural village had trade connections with other Teotihuacan settlements along the shores of Lake Texcoco.

Excavations also revealed that the settlement was later inhabited by the Mexica people, as well as by communities in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries.

Archaeologists identified Mexica occupation through the presence of two channels, which appeared to contain chinampa-style floating fields. These fields were artificially constructed, evidenced by a headless seated sculpture, various complete and incomplete objects, and a layer of small stones and slabs.