A high-resolution LiDAR survey of the remote Cuchumatanes Highlands in Guatemala has identified a massive, previously unknown industrial zone. The site, dubbed 'The City of Red Glass', served as a specialized hub for the production of polished cinnabar and obsidian mirrors during the Late Classic period. The LiDAR imagery revealed over 200 terraced workshops and a complex network of causeways connecting the site to major Maya urban centers.
Ground surveys have confirmed the presence of large stone grinding pits and ritual vaults filled with highly reflective obsidian discs coated in a fine mercury-sulfide paste. These artifacts were likely used in the 'mirror divination' ceremonies described in the Popol Vuh. This discovery provides the first physical evidence of a regional monopoly on the production of high-status ritual objects and sheds new light on the economic power of the highland Maya elites.