Guardian of the Acropolis: The Sacred Space of a Royal Burial at Piedras Negras, Guatemala

2003 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 449-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
James L. Fitzsimmons ◽  
Andrew Scherer ◽  
Stephen D. Houston ◽  
Héctor L. Escobedo
Keyword(s):  
Sacred Space ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Royal Family ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Sacred Landscape ◽  
Ceramic Phase ◽  
Piedras Negras ◽  
Young Member

Excavation of a small Maya ceremonial structure at the site of Piedras Negras, Guatemala, has revealed a Late Classic period (ca. A.D. 600–900) vaulted tomb containing the remains of a young member of the royal family whom we identify as “Night-time Turtle.” The artifact assemblage from the burial included a modest quantity of carved jade jewelry (38 pieces), an incised vessel dating to the early Yaxché (ca. A.D. 630–680) ceramic phase, and a ceremonial “bundle” of bloodletting implements. Although the sex of this adolescent was not determined during osteological examination, hieroglyphic evidence from a recovered stingray spine suggests that this was a prince, probably the son of Ruler 2 or 3. Placed at an entrance to the royal precinct atop its monumental staircase, his funerary structure was an integral part of the sacred landscape, accessed by visitors to the precinct or to the palace beyond. Following a description of the site, tomb, osteology, and artifacts, we discuss the nature of this landscape and the role in it played by this “guardian” of the Acropolis.

E-GROUPS, PSEUDO–E-GROUPS, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CLASSIC MAYA IDENTITY IN THE EASTERN PETEN

2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas H. Guderjan
Keyword(s):  
Sacred Space ◽  
Classic Maya ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
East Side ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
The West ◽  
Sacred Landscape ◽  
Preclassic Period ◽  
Early Classic Period ◽  
Public Architecture

The identity of the Classic Maya was expressed through public architecture and the creation of sacred landscape, which incorporated the landscape of creation and the concept of the world tree. Pyramids, plazas, stelae, and ballcourts were important components of this landscape. In the Peten, architectural complexes known as “E-groups” were another component. E-groups are well-known astronomical “orientation calendars” that were first built in the Terminal Preclassic period. Named after Group E at Uaxactun, they consist of three buildings on the east side of a public plaza and a fourth in the middle of the plaza or on the west side. Terminal Preclassic E-groups functioned as solstice and equinox markers. However, their function changed in the Early Classic period, arguably due to influence from Teotihuacan, to a focus on agricultural seasons. In this paper, I argue that pseudo–E-groups were built well into the Late Classic period in the eastern Peten and were a defining architectural complex for the region. The original, functional Terminal Preclassic E-groups were based on ritual activities focused on solar events. By the Early Classic, E-groups had become multipurpose parts of the sacred landscape of public architecture. Late Classic pseudo–E-groups, however, had become nonfunctional for either solar or agriculturally oriented observation. Nevertheless, they had become so deeply embedded into the template of sacred space and architecture that pseudo–E–groups were constructed to reinforce the identity of cities and the validity of their rulers.

scholarly journals Classic Maya Dental Interventions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua Schnell ◽  
Andrew Scherer
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Posterior Teeth ◽  
The Past ◽  
Piedras Negras ◽  
Ancient Health ◽  
Dental Procedures ◽  
Maya Site ◽  
Tooth Extractions

Tooth extractions are among the most common dental procedures performed globally today; however, archaeological evidence for such procedures in the past is relatively scant and largely limited to the Classical world. We present a case of therapeutic dental extractions of pathological teeth at the ancient Maya site of Piedras Negras, Guatemala, during the Late Classic period (A.D. 600–800). The evidence comes from an assemblage of fractured, pathological teeth (n = 127) recovered from the marketplace at Piedras Negras during excavations in 2016 and 2017. We compare the Piedras Negras marketplace teeth to the broader Late Classic period mortuary population at the site along three lines of analysis: (1) distribution of teeth by type (incisors, canines, premolars, and molars), (2) pathologies, including dental caries and calculus, and (3) dental wear. We also explore in detail the fracture patterns apparent in the marketplace assemblage. Our results indicate that the marketplace teeth display a significantly greater caries rate than the broader mortuary population and that posterior teeth (premolars and molars) are overrepresented in the marketplace sample. These findings point toward therapeutic extractions intended to ameliorate pain associated with oral pathologies. This article presents one of the fewcase studies of ancient health care in the Americas and situates these practices within the market, an important, urban space across much of precolonial Mesoamerica. Las extracciones dentales se encuentran entre los procedimientos dentales más comunes realizados a nivel mundial en la actualidad. Sin embargo, la evidencia arqueológica para tales procedimientos es relativamente escasa en el pasado y se limita en gran medida al mundo Clásico. En este artículo, se presenta un caso de extracciones dentales terapéuticas de dientes patológicos en el antiguo sitio maya de Piedras Negras, Guatemala, durante el periodo Clásico Tardío (600-800 d.C.). La evidencia de este caso proviene de una colección de dientes patológicos y fracturados (n = 127) recolectados en el mercado de Piedras Negras durante las excavaciones realizadas en los años de 2016 y 2017. Estos dientes fueron comparados con otros dientes recolectados alrededor del sitio en contextos mortuorios del periodo Clásico Tardío a lo largo de tres líneas de análisis: (1) la distribución de los dientes por tipo (incisivos, caninos, premolares y molares), (2) las patologías, incluyendo caries dentales y cálculo y (3) el desgaste dental. Asimismo, se exploró en detalle los patrones de fractura aparentes en la colección del mercado. Los resultados de este análisis indican que los dientes del mercado muestran una tasa de caries significativamente mayor que los dientes recolectados en contextos mortuorios y que los dientes posteriores (premolares y molares) se encuentran sobrerrepresentados en la muestra proveniente del mercado. Estos hallazgos demuestran el uso de extracciones terapéuticas designadas a aliviar el dolor asociado a las patologías bucales. Este artículo presenta uno de los pocos estudios de caso de atención médica en el pasado en las Américas y sitúa estas prácticas dentro del mercado, un importante espacio urbano que se encuentra a través de la Mesoamérica precolombina.

FRAYED AT THE EDGES: COLLECTIVE MEMORY AND HISTORY ON THE BORDERS OF CLASSIC MAYA POLITIES

2010 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 373-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Golden
Keyword(s):  
Collective Memory ◽  
Social Memory ◽  
Classic Maya ◽  
Political Community ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
History And Memory ◽  
Piedras Negras ◽  
Political Act ◽  
And Control

AbstractThis article explores social memory and history as they pertain particularly to secondary political centers on the edges of the Classic Maya kingdoms of Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan. Over the course of the Late Classic period (a.d. 600–900) the rulers of Maya polities in the Usumacinta River basin increasingly relied on the subordinate lords who governed these secondary centers to patrol and control the boundaries of their territories. For the rulers of any state, formulating an appropriate and coherent history to guide social memory is a critical political act for maintaining the cohesion of the political community. But as the Classic period progressed, client lords were increasingly permitted a formerly royal prerogative; they were accorded their own inscribed monuments. The monuments, together with associated ritual performances, were an integral part of the construction of history and collective memory in local communities and allowed secondary nobles to restructure social memory for their own interests. This trend, in turn, increased the potential for royal history and authority to be contested throughout the kingdom. Through several case studies this paper examines the ways that subordinate nobles could contest social memory and history sanctioned by primary rulers and the ways in which kings acted to maintain the reins of history and memory.

ANCIENT MAYAN RITUAL CAVE COMPLEXES AS MEMORY SPACE

2021 ◽  
pp. 81-92
Author(s):  
Sandra A. Khokhryakova (Viskanta) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Historical Memory ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Sacred Landscape ◽  
Memory Space ◽  
Specific Event ◽  
Natural Barriers

The Mayan commemorative practices of the Classic Period (3d – 9 th centuries) committed for the purpose of on claiming the power le- gitimacy, territorial possessions and the establishment of political influence, are well known. A commemorative program, aimed at constructing historical memory, is characterized by the ostentation and periodic addressing to specific event, and by ritual accompaniment. In the article the author identifies one more commemorative practice that stands out of the listed – the hieroglyphic texts in Mayan caves. The caves are among the objects of the sacred landscape, which is common for all Mesoamerican cultures; it was and still is a place for the pilgrimage and worship. Many archaeological projects witnessed the elite and non-elite use of caves in the Late Classic and the Postclassic Periods. The hieroglyphic texts were applied in hard-to-reach areas of absolute darkness, where sunlight did not reach them due to natural barriers or artificial walls. Such texts were not intended to be broadly demonstrated. This article consid- ers the practice of hidden text application as a special type of the Maya com- memorative practice of the Сlassic Period.

Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan: Divergent Political Trajectories in Adjacent Maya Polities

2008 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 249-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Golden ◽  
Andrew K. Scherer ◽  
A. René Muñoz ◽  
Rosaura Vasquez
Keyword(s):  
Eighth Century ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Border Zone ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Territorial Expansion ◽  
Study Region ◽  
Architectural Styles ◽  
Piedras Negras ◽  
Preclassic Period ◽  
Early Classic Period

In this article we present a synthetic overview and preliminary analysis of the data collected by members of the Sierra del Lacandón Regional Archaeology Project (SLRAP) during four field seasons of research from 2003 to 2007. We examine the growth, development, and transformation of the Classic Maya polities of Piedras Negras, Guatemala, and Yaxchilan, Mexico, located in the Middle Usumacinta Basin. This analysis uses a conjunctive approach, incorporating analyses of iconography, epigraphy, settlement patterns, ceramics, mortuary patterns, and architectural styles. During the Late Preclassic period (c. 250 B.C.-A.D. 350) settlement was scattered widely across the study region and Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan were only two of a number of other equally powerful Preclassic communities. In the Early Classic period (c. A.D. 350-600) royal dynasties were established at both Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan and the population of the region became concentrated at these two sites. During the Late Classic period (c. A.D. 600-810) the political frontier between Piedras Negras and Yaxchilan was repopulated and transformed into a contested border zone surrounding a political boundary. This territorial expansion culminated in endemic warfare by the eighth century A.D., which may have ultimately led to the demise of these two Maya polities.

Changing Patterns of Ritual Activity in an Unlooted Cave in Central Guatemala

2012 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 93-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brent K.S. Woodfill ◽  
Stanley Guenter ◽  
Mirza Monterroso
Keyword(s):  
Classic Period ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Interregional Trade ◽  
Terminal Classic ◽  
Changing Patterns ◽  
Ritual Activity ◽  
Trade Route ◽  
Northern Highlands

AbstractThe Cave of Hun Nal Ye, located in central Guatemala, was discovered unlooted by a local landowner in 2005 and was immediately subject to investigation by the authors. The cave contained ritual remains dating to between the Terminal Pre-classic and Terminal Classic. In addition to allowing a detailed reconstruction of ritual activity in the northern highlands, its presence along the Great Western Trade Route allows archaeologists to examine hypotheses about interregional trade during the Classic period. In particular, changes in the ritual assemblage between the Early and Late Classic indicate that the cave was an important trade shrine for merchants and travelers passing between the highlands and lowlands until ca. A.D. 550, at which point it became a local shrine used to reinforce elite power. These changes are then linked to larger patterns occurring in other parts of the trade route, especially to Tikal and the kingdoms along the Pasión and Usumacinta rivers.

Analysis of the Context and Contents of an Ulua-Style Marble Vase from the Palmarejo Valley, Honduras

2014 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Christian Wells ◽  
Karla L. Davis-Salazar ◽  
José E. Moreno-Cortes ◽  
Glenn S. L. Stuart ◽  
Anna C. Novotny
Keyword(s):  
Stable Isotope ◽  
Stable Isotope Analysis ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Isotope Analysis ◽  
Human Remains ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Residential Group ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Political Economic

Ulúa-style marble vases played important social, political, economic, and religious roles in southern Mesoamerica during the seventh through eleventh centuries A.D. However, most such vessels known to archaeologists are part of looted collections or else were unearthed before the advent of modern archaeological practices. As a result, little is known about the context, use, and chronology of these objects. Recent investigations at the site of Palos Blancos in northwest Honduras discovered an Ulúa-style marble vase in an undisturbed mortuary context. Excavation of the burial context, along with bioarchaeological and stable isotope analysis of the human remains, suggests that the vase was placed as an offering, possibly to an ancestor of the residential group. Phosphate and pollen studies indicate that the vase once held a corn-based beverage . Radiocarbon dating of four charcoal samples from immediately below and adjacent to the vase yielded a range of dates from the beginning of the Late Classic period, ca.A.D. 600-800. Through analyses of the context and contents of the vase, this research contributes to a more holistic understanding of the use and meaning of Ulúa-style marble vases in southern Mesoamerica.

A MAYA CARVED SHELL PLAQUE FROM TULA, HIDALGO, MEXICO

2001 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald McVicker ◽  
Joel W. Palka
Keyword(s):  
Social Context ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Central Mexico ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Field Museum ◽  
Terminal Classic ◽  
Non Local ◽  
Chichen Itza ◽  
Terminal Classic Period

In the early 1880s, a finely carved Maya shell picture plaque was found at the Toltec capital of Tula, central Mexico, and was subsequently acquired by The Field Museum in Chicago. The shell was probably re-carved in the Terminal Classic period and depicts a seated lord with associated Maya hieroglyphs on the front and back. Here the iconography and glyphic text of this unique artifact are examined, the species and habitat of the shell are described, and its archaeological and social context are interpreted. The Tula plaque is then compared with Maya carved jade picture plaques of similar size and design that were widely distributed throughout Mesoamerica, but were later concentrated in the sacred cenote at Chichen Itza. It is concluded that during the Late Classic period, these plaques played an important role in establishing contact between Maya lords and their counterparts representing peripheral and non-Maya domains. The picture plaques may have been elite Maya gifts establishing royal alliances with non-local polities and may have become prestige objects used in caches and termination rituals.

Linguistic Divergence and the Collapse of Preclassic Civilization in Southern Mesoamerica

1987 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 367-382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce H. Dahlin ◽  
Robin Quizar ◽  
Andrea Dahlin
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Communication Networks ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Late Classic ◽  
Postclassic Period ◽  
Proximate Cause ◽  
Terminal Classic ◽  
Early Postclassic ◽  
Ultimate Cause ◽  
Early Classic Period

Based on published lexicostatistical dates, two intervals in the prehistory of southern Mesoamerica stand out as fertile periods in terms of the generation of new languages: the Terminal Preclassic/early Early Classic Periods, and the Early Postclassic Period. After comparing archaeological evidence with language distributions within the subregions of southern Mesoamerica during the first of these periods, we conclude that the cultural processes during both periods had the same potential for producing rapid rates of linguistic divergences. Just as rapid proliferation of linguistic divisions was symptomatic of the well-known collapse of Late Classic Maya civilization, so it can be taken as a sign of a collapse of Terminal Preclassic civilization. Both collapses were characterized by severe population reductions, site abandonments, an increasing balkanization in material culture, and disruption of interregional communication networks, conditions that were contributory to the kind of linguistic isolation that allows language divergences. Unlike in the Terminal Classic collapse episode, small refuge zones persisted in the Early Classic Period that served as sources of an evolving classicism; these refuge zones were exceptions, however, not the rule. Although the collapse of each site had its own proximate cause, we suggest that the enormous geographical range covered by these Early Classic Period site failures points to a single ultimate cause affecting the area as a whole, such as the onset of a prolonged and devastating climatic change.

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