Early Monumentality in the Belize River Valley: Excavations of a Preclassic E-Group at Cahal Pech, Belize

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Claire E. Ebert ◽  
James McGee ◽  
Jaime J. Awe
Keyword(s):  
River Valley ◽  
Public Events ◽  
Belize River Valley ◽  
Middle Preclassic ◽  
Civic Space

Recent investigations at Cahal Pech, Belize, documented a previously unrecognized Middle Preclassic (700–500 cal BC) E-Group complex. Located in an open public plaza, the monumental complex likely functioned as a forum for communal public events. In the Late Preclassic, the E-Group was replaced by an ancestor shrine where several royal tombs are located, as well as buildings separating public civic space from private elite space. These shifts in monumental construction temporally track the development of ideological manifestations of power and provide evidence for the formalization of dynastic rulership by an emerging elite class.

Preclassic Round Structures of the Upper Belize River Valley

2000 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
James J. Aimers ◽  
Terry G. Powis ◽  
Jaime J. Awe
Keyword(s):  
River Valley ◽  
Architectural Form ◽  
Maya Architecture ◽  
Belize River Valley ◽  
Preclassic Maya ◽  
Preclassic Period ◽  
The World ◽  
Middle Preclassic ◽  
Maya Site

Round structures are considered a rarity in Maya architecture. Four late Middle Preclassic period (650-300 B.C.) round structures excavated at the Maya site of Cahal Pech demonstrate that this was a common architectural form for the Preclassic Maya of the upper Belize River Valley. These open platforms are described, and compared to similar forms in the Belize Valley and elsewhere. An interpretation of their significance is offered that uses information from artifacts, burials, and ethnohistory as well as analogy with round structures in other parts of the world. We suggest that these small round platforms were used for performance related to their role as burial or ancestor shrines.

The Cunil Complex

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren A. Sullivan ◽  
Jaime J. Awe ◽  
M. Kathryn Brown
Keyword(s):  
River Valley ◽  
Maya Lowlands ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Belize River Valley ◽  
Preclassic Period ◽  
Ancient Site ◽  
Middle Preclassic ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Marine Shell

This chapter provides an overview of recent data pertaining to the first settled villages in the Belize River valley. The authors highlight the known Preceramic data from the region and suggest that sedentary villages appear at the beginning of the Preclassic, possibly as early as 1200 B.C. The Cunil phase pottery, first documented at the ancient site of Cahal Pech, represents the earliest ceramics found in the Maya lowlands. Long distance trade items such as obsidian, marine shell, and greenstone are associated with Cunil phase pottery, suggesting that these early villages were participating in a larger interaction sphere. As population grew over time in the Middle Preclassic period, interaction with neighboring regions increased leading to a more uniform ceramic tradition.

Middle Preclassic Maya Shell Ornament Production

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bobbi Hohmann ◽  
Terry G. Powis ◽  
Paul F. Healy
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Large Scale Production ◽  
Belize River Valley ◽  
Preclassic Maya ◽  
Preclassic Period ◽  
Non Local ◽  
Degree Of Control ◽  
Middle Preclassic ◽  
Marine Shell

Extensive archaeological investigations at the site of Pacbitun, a medium-sized Maya center located in west-central Belize, have revealed the large-scale production of marine shell ornaments during Middle Preclassic period (900-300 B.C.). Non-local marine shell and the restricted nature of its distribution indicate that some degree of control may have been exerted over the production and/or distribution of marine shell or the finished shell products. The sheer quantities of shell working debris in the site core of Pacbitun suggest that these ornaments were intended for intra- or extra-community exchange. Two different scenarios are presented to account for the quantity and spatial distribution of Middle Preclassic shell and shell working materials at Pacbitun and in the Belize River valley.

TO EAT, DISCARD, OR VENERATE: FAUNAL REMAINS AS PROXY FOR HUMAN BEHAVIORS IN LOWLAND MAYA PERI-ABANDONMENT DEPOSITS

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chrissina C. Burke ◽  
Katie K. Tappan ◽  
Gavin B. Wisner ◽  
Julie A. Hoggarth ◽  
Jaime J. Awe
Keyword(s):  
River Valley ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Human Behaviors ◽  
Belize River Valley ◽  
Baking Pot ◽  
Lowland Maya

AbstractInterpreting middens, feasting events, ritual, or terminal deposits in the Maya world requires an evaluation of faunal remains. Maya archaeologists consistently evaluate other artifact classes, but often offer simply number of identified specimens values for skeletal elements recovered from these deposits. To further understand their archaeological significance, we analyzed faunal materials from deposits at the sites of Baking Pot and Xunantunich in the Upper Belize River Valley. We identified the species, bone elements, bone or shell artifacts, taphonomic signatures, and quantitative ratios recovered to test whether a deposit can be identified as a midden, part of a feasting ritual, terminal ritual, or other rituals significant to the Maya. Our analyses allow us to begin building a system for using faunal remains as a proxy for interpreting the significance of these deposits. In this paper, we present our results and hope to open the conversation for future evaluations of faunal remains in similar deposits.

RITUAL EMULATION OF ANCIENT MAYA ELITE MORTUARY TRADITIONS DURING THE CLASSIC PERIOD (AD 250–900) AT CAHAL PECH, BELIZE

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 641-659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna C. Novotny ◽  
Jaime J. Awe ◽  
Catharina E. Santasilia ◽  
Kelly J. Knudson
Keyword(s):  
River Valley ◽  
Ancient Maya ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Ruling Elite ◽  
Mortuary Ritual ◽  
Sequence Of Events ◽  
Belize River Valley ◽  
Radiocarbon Data ◽  
Maya Site ◽  
Valley Area

In this study, we employ multiple lines of evidence to elucidate the use of mortuary ritual by the ruling elite at the ancient Maya site of Cahal Pech, Belize, during the Early Classic and early Late Classic periods (AD 250–630). The interments of multiple individuals in Burial 7 of Structure B1, the central structure of an Eastern Triadic Assemblage or “E-group” style architectural complex, were in a manner not consistent with the greater Belize River Valley, the only multiple individual human burial yet encountered at Cahal Pech. The sequential interments contained a suggestive quantity of high-quality artifacts, further setting them apart from their contemporaries. Among these artifacts were a set of bone rings and a hairpin inscribed with hieroglyphs, some of the few inscriptions ever found at Cahal Pech. We analyzed regional mortuary patterns, radiogenic strontium values, and radiocarbon data to test hypotheses about who these individuals were in life, why they were treated differently in death, and to reconstruct the sequence of events of this complex mortuary deposit. We contend that the mortuary practices in Burial 7 indicate an attempt by the Cahal Pech elite to identify with cities or regions outside the Belize River Valley area.

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