Pathways to Complexity

Pathways to Complexity synthesizes a wealth of new archaeological data to illuminate the origins of Maya civilization and the rise of Classic Maya culture. In this volume, prominent Maya scholars argue that the development of social, religious, and economic complexity began during the Middle Preclassic period (1000–300 B.C.), hundreds of years earlier than previously thought. Contributors reveal that villages were present in parts of the lowlands by 1000 B.C., challenging the prevailing models estimating when civilization took root in the area. Combining recent discoveries from the northern lowlands—an area often neglected in other volumes—and the southern lowlands, the collection then traces the emergence of sociopolitical inequality and complexity in all parts of the Yucatan peninsula over the course of the Middle Preclassic period. They show that communities evolved in different ways due to influences such as geographical location, ceramic exchange, shell ornament production, agricultural strategy, religious ritual, ideology, and social rankings. These varied pathways to complexity developed over half a millennium and culminated in the institution of kingship by the Late Preclassic period. Presenting exciting work on a dynamic and poorly understood time period, Pathways to Complexity demonstrates the importance of a broad, comparative approach to understanding Preclassic Maya civilization and will serve as a foundation for future research and interpretation.

Middle Preclassic Maya Shell Ornament Production

10.5744/florida/9780813054841.003.0006 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

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.

Introduction

10.5744/florida/9780813054841.003.0001 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

M. Kathryn Brown ◽

George J. Bey

Keyword(s):

Social Complexity ◽

Past Research ◽

Classic Maya ◽

Maya Lowlands ◽

Time Period ◽

New Information ◽

Preclassic Maya ◽

Middle Preclassic ◽

First Time

This introduction to the edited volume by Brown and Bey summarizes past research on the Preclassic Maya and discusses an explosion of new information from the last fifteen years pushing back the origins of social complexity into the Middle Preclassic. This chapter highlights the fact that this volume brings together important archaeology and research considering the Middle and Late Preclassic periods from both the southern and northern Maya lowlands for the first time. The Late Preclassic was long thought to be the time period by which archaeologists could explain the rise and nature of Classic Maya culture. However, as the fifteen chapters in this volume argue, any discussion of the development of social complexity must be focused on the Middle Preclassic (1000-300 B.C.).

The History, Function, and Meaning of Preclassic E Groups in the Cival Region

Maya E Groups ◽

10.5744/florida/9780813054353.003.0009 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Francisco Estrada-Belli

Keyword(s):

Initial Function ◽

Political Systems ◽

Place Making ◽

Archaeological Data ◽

Preclassic Period ◽

Archaeological Project ◽

Middle Preclassic ◽

Ritual Behavior ◽

Single Locality

This chapter summarizes archaeological data and interpretations regarding 13 E Groups from the Cival region mapped and excavated by the Holmul Archaeological Project between 2000 and 2015. In the Middle (1000-350 BCE) and Late Preclassic (350 BCE-0 CE) periods Cival was the main political and ritual center in this region of northeastern Petén. Over the course of the Late Preclassic Period, four additional E Groups were built at Cival and nine more have been found so far at surrounding minor centers. These data from E Group complexes provide a coherent sample of architectural chronology, dimension, orientation and evidence of ritual behavior. Excavations in the Cival Main Plaza provide the most complete example of a Middle Preclassic E Group available to date. The ritual function of Cival’s earliest E Group focused on solar hierophanies that uniquely connected, calendrical, metereological and geomantic observations within a single locality. Subsequent Late Preclassic complexes in the region were built following the same principles according to each site’s peculiar topographic setting. In accordance with their initial function as place-making devices for emerging communities, E Groups in the Late Preclassic Period were associated with the emergence of regional political systems as centers of religious and political interactions.

Preclassic Round Structures of the Upper Belize River Valley

Latin American Antiquity ◽

10.2307/1571671 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 71-86 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

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 Ceramics of Cuello, Belize

Ancient Mesoamerica ◽

10.1017/s095653610000184x ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 55-66 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Laura J. Kosakowsky ◽

Duncan C. Pring

Keyword(s):

Fourth Century ◽

Maya Lowlands ◽

Time Period ◽

Preclassic Maya ◽

AbstractThe site of Cuello in northern Belize provides a long ceramic sequence from the early Middle Preclassic, ca. 1200 b.c., to the Late Preclassic, sometime in the fourth century a.d. Excavations begun at Cuello in 1975 were completed in 1993. The initial controversy concerning the chronological placement of the earliest pottery of the Swasey and Bladen complexes is challenged by examining the 1992 and 1993 excavated material in a “blind analysis,” without benefit of stratigraphic information. The results demonstrate conclusively the stratigraphie priority of Swasey ceramics below Bladen, which in turn lie below pottery of the Middle Preclassic Lopez-Mamom complex. Cuello operated within the homogeneous Mamom ceramic sphere during the Middle Preclassic and within the Chicanel ceramic sphere during the Late Preclassic. The ultimate breakup of the Chicanel sphere resulted in Cuello's adherence to the older ceramic traditions, while other Maya sites had begun the production of polychrome pottery. Cuello represents one of the best-known Middle Preclassic Maya sites yet investigated, and it provides an important perspective on this poorly understood time period in the Maya lowlands.

AFTER 40 YEARS: REVISITING CEIBAL TO INVESTIGATE THE ORIGINS OF LOWLAND MAYA CIVILIZATION

Ancient Mesoamerica ◽

10.1017/s0956536117000037 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 28 (1) ◽

pp. 187-201 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Takeshi Inomata ◽

Daniela Triadan ◽

Kazuo Aoyama

Keyword(s):

Spatial Pattern ◽

Gulf Coast ◽

Field Investigations ◽

Preclassic Period ◽

Research Designs ◽

Maya Civilization ◽

Research Questions ◽

Middle Preclassic ◽

Maya Site ◽

Lowland Maya

AbstractThe Ceibal-Petexbatun Archaeological Project has been conducting field investigations at the lowland Maya site of Ceibal since 2005. Previous research at this site by Harvard University allowed us to develop detailed research designs geared toward specific research questions. A particularly important focus was the question of how lowland Maya civilization emerged and developed. Comparison with contemporaneous sites in central Chiapas led us to hypothesize that the residents of Ceibal established a formal spatial pattern similar to those of the Chiapas centers during the Middle Preclassic period (1000–350b.c.). Through excavations of important elements of this spatial pattern, including a probable E-Group assemblage and large platforms, we examined how the Ceibal residents participated in interregional interactions with Chiapas, the Gulf Coast, and other areas, and how construction activities and architecture shaped the course of social change.

Regroup On “E-Groups”: Monumentality and Early Centers in the Middle Preclassic Maya Lowlands

Latin American Antiquity ◽

10.7183/1045-6635.23.4.355 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 23 (4) ◽

pp. 355-379 ◽

Cited By ~ 26

Author(s):

James A. Doyle

Keyword(s):

Information Systems ◽

Geographic Information Systems ◽

Geographic Information ◽

Political Authority ◽

Maya Lowlands ◽

Monumental Architecture ◽

Viewshed Analysis ◽

Preclassic Maya ◽

Preclassic Period ◽

AbstractFor nearly a century, scholars have used astronomical evidence to explain the Lowland Maya architectural type known as “E-Groups” as solar observatories and, by extension, as locations for rituals related to solar and agricultural cycles. This article departs from the usual focus on the observational properties of E-Groups and places them in the context of early Maya monumentality during the Middle Preclassic period. Specifically, E-Groups are seen as the earliest monumental social spaces in the Maya Lowlands, with multifaceted functions and placements that indicate a shared social map of the landscape. Geographic information systems viewshed analysis of Middle Preclassic E-Group sites demonstrates that populations constructed E-Groups in places that maximized visibility of the nearby landscape. Viewsheds conducted at sites with Middle Preclassic E-Groups in the central Maya Lowlands suggest that the large plazas and similar monumental architecture represent the centers of comparable, mutually visible communities. Settlers founding these communities consciously created distance from neighboring monumental centers, perhaps as means of defining and buttressing group identity and undergirding spatial claims to political authority. Recent archaeological evidence affords clues that such spaces were civic, allowing architectural settings for social gatherings and access to resources.

Conclusion

10.5744/florida/9780813054841.003.0016 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

M. Kathryn Brown ◽

George J. Bey

Keyword(s):

Future Research ◽

Craft Specialization ◽

Ancient Maya ◽

Maya Lowlands ◽

Preclassic Maya ◽

Maya Civilization ◽

Similarities And Differences

In this concluding chapter, Brown and Bey summarize the contributions to the volume and provide an updated synthesis of the development of ancient Maya civilization from the Preceramic to the Middle and Late Preclassic. The similarities and differences between regions in the Maya lowlands are highlighted in regards to ceramics, craft specialization, ritual, and architecture. This chapter concludes with a list of problems for consideration for future research pertaining to the Preclassic Maya.

The Preclassic Period

10.5744/florida/9780813054841.003.0010 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Tara Bond-Freeman

Keyword(s):

Settlement Pattern ◽

Maya Lowlands ◽

Ceramic Assemblage ◽

Archaeological Data ◽

Preclassic Period ◽

Middle Preclassic ◽

A Site ◽

Village Life ◽

Residential Settlement ◽

Ek Balam

Chapter 10 examines the beginnings of the residential settlement pattern for the late Middle Preclassic Period at Ek Balam, in northeast Yucatan. It also offers a discussion of the transition to the Late Preclassic period and information about the transition of village life toward urban origins during this ancient time at the site. The Middle Preclassic ceramic assemblage is similar to others in the northern Maya lowlands and the data suggests a dispersed settlement pattern with hints at a site-wide construction standard. Also of interest is that the archaeological data suggests paired structures. During the Late Preclassic there is a gradual shift in the settlement pattern including possible nucleation on the eastern side. There is also no longer evidence for paired structures.

PRECLASSIC MAYA OCCUPATION OF THE ITZAN ESCARPMENT, LOWER RÍO DE LA PASIÓN, PETÉN, GUATEMALA

Ancient Mesoamerica ◽

10.1017/s0956536106060093 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

pp. 177-201 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Kevin J. Johnston

Keyword(s):

Political Geography ◽

Drainage System ◽

Classic Period ◽

Late Classic ◽

System A ◽

Preclassic Maya ◽

Preclassic Period ◽

Maya elites and commoners intensively occupied the Itzan escarpment, located in the lower Río de la Pasión drainage system of Petén, Guatemala, during the Preclassic and Protoclassic periods. Itzan was colonized during the Xe phase of the Middle Preclassic period, and its occupation intensified during the late Middle and Late Preclassic periods, when elite residential and ceremonial facilities were erected. During the Late Preclassic and Protoclassic periods, the escarpment was dominated by Chaak Ak'al, a large site distinguished by massive pyramids and lengthy wall-like constructions, which undoubtedly served as a polity capital. Subsequent to the Protoclassic period, the locus of activity atop the escarpment shifted back to Itzan, which served as a polity capital through the Late Classic period. From data collected at Itzan, Chaak Ak'al, and other sites of the lower Río de la Pasión drainage system, a picture of regional Preclassic Maya political geography is emerging.