Workers were digging for a railway line in Sonora when they stumbled upon something far older than concrete. According to Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), a team of archaeologists uncovered an ancient village that predates the famous Cerro de Trincheras site, along with two areas filled with rock carvings. The discovery emerged during salvage excavations tied to the Ímuris-Nogales railway bypass project, revealing a settlement far larger than anyone had expected.
The village, known as La Ciénega, lies in the valley and canyon of the Cocóspera River, near the border with Arizona. A six-member archaeological team from INAH’s Sonora Centre, led by Júpiter Martínez Ramírez, spent months carefully documenting the remains. It stands as one of the most notable archaeological finds made in the area in recent years.
What makes the discovery remarkable is that it had been hiding in plain sight. The site had already been identifiedin 2008, when researchers recorded only 10 houses scattered across the landscape. Construction activity exposed the true scale of the settlement, one that extended well beyond early estimates.
A Village Built Below Ground
The people of La Ciénega did not build their homes the way many neighboring societies did. As explained by the INAH’s research, the village’s houses were oval or rectangular semi-subterranean structures, extending between 1 and 2.2 meters below ground level. This building style appears to have evolved over generations, as internal walls within residential compounds were later enlarged with earthen additions, indicating that the village was inhabited and rebuilt multiple times over the centuries
Inside these underground compounds, archaeologists identified interior walls forming enclosed spaces that resembled family neighborhoods. This suggests that several generations of extended families may have lived together in tightly connected residential clusters.
“The architectural remains are scattered across the entire plateau, which measures 250 meters long by 250 meters wide, where there were once around sixty houses. Additionally, the lands near the watercourse were cultivated,” stated Martínez Ramírez.
Researchers believe the village residents chose this spot because it gave them access to fertile land and a good place to settle.
Ancient Graves Tell A Larger Story
The human remains uncovered offer insight into the community’s ritual practices and social connections. As reported in Heritage Daily, excavations across three residential complexes uncovered two distinct burial zones containing more than 100 human remains associated with the Trincheras Tradition.
Among them were approximately 40 traditional burials, where individuals were placed in a flexed position, along with 28 cremations in which the remains had been placed inside ceramic vessels. Some burials contained simple shell ornaments, suggesting unequal access to valued goods within the community. The INAH team explained that:
“We observe traces of the Trincheras and Hohokam traditions, which we have long considered parallel without fully understanding the connections between them. Here we see repeated migrations and abandonments. This leads us to believe that La Ciénega was a border site for the circulation of resources.”
Messages Carved into Stone
INAH stated in a release, archaeologists documented two rock-art sites in the surrounding landscape. One location, known as Babasac Petroglyphs, includes six panels stretching over 200 meters, decorated with geometric and human figures.
A second site, called Bear Footprints, contains carvings inside a small cave that resemble bear tracks. INAH archaeologists noted that the exact age remains uncertain, but the rock carvings likely date from AD 800 to 1400.
Therock carvings reveal another side of life at La Ciénega. Together with the settlement and burial discoveries, they help paint a more complete picture of how people lived, structured their communities, and shaped the environment around them.
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