Christophe G B Helmke
Biographic Data
| ID | 190860 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Christophe G B Helmke |
| GIVEN NAMES | Christophe G B |
| FAMILY NAME | Helmke |
| SIGNATURE | HELMKE C G B |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Copenhagen |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3691-7075 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 51 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 215 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 51 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2007 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 8 |
Personified Ailments and Regional Identities in the Eastern Maya Lowlands
In this article, Classic Maya (ca. AD 250–900) conceptions of the supernatural are examined, not through the shared pantheon of deities but by focusing on wahy, an alternate category of demonic entities attested in hieroglyphic texts. The changing interpretations of wahy entities in Mayanist studies are reviewed, originally understood as personal animal spirit companions and now viewed as entities that personify illnesses. These were consistently…
Una evaluación de la cultura material maya encontrada en Teotihuacán y sus posibles significados
La influencia política y mercantil de Teotihuacán en las culturas mesoamericanas contemporáneas tuvo repercusiones de amplio alcance. Entre éstas destacan los enclaves o vecindarios extranjeros, ubicados en la misma capital. La naturaleza de estos vecindarios, así como el papel y el lugar que tuvieron estas poblaciones extranjeras quedan por ser evaluados adecuadamente. En una primera aproximación a la presencia e influencia maya en Teotihuacán, …
Two ancient Maya tattooing tools from Actun Uayazba Kab, Roaring Creek Valley, Belize
Los textos jeroglíficos mayas en el altiplano central mexicano. Autoría y audiencia
En este artículo, exploraremos las interacciones mayas con el altiplano central de México a través de la escritura. No serán abordados aquí los textos jeroglíficos mayas que arrojan informaciones sobre las relaciones entre Teotihuacán y los mayas. En cambio, consideraremos los pocos textos jeroglíficos mayas que se han encontrado en el altiplano central con la intención de determinar no sólo lo que transmiten y su datación, sino también la inform…
The Language of Teotihuacan Writing
The culture that thrived at Teotihuacan in the Classic period has a unique place in Mesoamerican history. Today, it is held as an emblem of the Mexican national past and is one of the most visited archaeological sites in the Americas. Nevertheless, curious visitors are told that the ethnic and linguistic affiliation of the Teotihuacanos remains unknown. Whereas the decipherment of other Mesoamerican writing systems has provided a wealth of inform…
The ideology and symbolism of ancient Maya chert and obsidian eccentrics from central Belize
Eccentrics are associated with fundamentally important concepts in ancient Maya cosmology and religion. As their name implies, eccentrics are irregularly shaped, non-utilitarian, special function artifacts. Knapped from chert and obsidian, they vary in size, take many forms, and can be expediently made or masterfully crafted. In this study, we focus on eccentrics from Central Belize, specifically those from Ballcourt 2 at Xunantunich, as well as …
The Implements of the Blade House
The ancient Maya produced chipped chert and obsidian tools for inclusion in religious rituals as both symbolic and/or functional implements. In this paper, we discuss one particular form of these special chipped stone tools – the large laurel-leaf biface. Laurel-leaf bifaces recovered from the cave sites of Actun Chapat, Actun Tunichil Mucnal, Actun Yaxteel Ahau, and Je’reftheel in central Belize are analyzed in terms of context, lithic raw mater…
El legado de la Señora Seis Cielo
La ‘llegada’ de la Señora Seis Cielo en 682 d.C. ha sido reconocida desde hace mucho tiempo como un punto de inflexión fundamental en la historia de Naranjo, marcando en esencia el reavivamiento de la dinastía. El hecho de que todas las referencias a este evento sean retrospectivas enfatiza el carisma de la Señora Seis Cielo y los recursos diplomáticos que empleó. En última instancia, esto le permitió afirmarse como regente del joven K’ahk’ Tilii…
An account of the kings of Kanu'l as recorded on the hieroglyphic stair of K'an II of Caracol
Many questions remain about the hieroglyphic stair dedicated in a.d. 642 by K'an II, the great king of Caracol. Constituent panels have been found at Caracol, Ucanal, Naranjo, and Xunantunich—archaeological sites spread between Guatemala and Belize. The most recently discovered Panels 3 and 4 at Xunantunich shed light on the tumultuous decades of the seventh century. Panel 4, which opened the hieroglyphic stair, makes a surprising statement from …
The carved monuments of La Milpa, Belize
La Milpa, situated in northern Belize, stands out as one of the region's largest archaeological sites, having served as the capital of an ancient Maya city-state. Its significance is indicated by extensive monumental architecture, with the epicenter covering approximately 8.8 ha. The site's corpus of monuments, comprising 23 stelae and several altars, underscores its prominence in northern Belize, rivaling the corpora of sites such as Nim li Puni…
Obsidian Tool Function and Maya Lithic Economy at Terminal Classic Pook's Hill, Belize
The typological, technological, and use-wear analyses of obsidian artifacts from Terminal Classic Pook's Hill (AD 830-950+) provide opportunities to better reconstruct socioeconomic activities in this plazuela group, including long-distance trade, tool production, subsistence practices, domestic tasks, and the organization of craft production. Based on visual sourcing, most of the obsidian originated from highland Guatemala, specifically El Chaya…
All that is old is new again
The close collaboration between researchers of the Institute of Cross-cultural and Regional Studies, the Copenhagen University Library (KUB) of the Royal Danish Library, and members of the Rigsters 3D Scanning team in the private sector has led to highly productive interchange and applications of some of the most recent photogrammetric modelling, especially with applications to archaeology, cultural heritage and epigraphy. In this paper, we highl…
The Preceramic and Early Ceramic Periods in Belize and the Central Maya Lowlands
This introduction to the Special Section provides a summary of our current understanding of the first humans and the first Maya in these regions and presents seven articles that examine these critical periods from varied, intersecting perspectives. The Introduction begins with a brief history of early preceramic research (primarily in northern Belize) and provides a current chronology for the Paleoindian, Archaic, and Early Preclassic periods. Th…
The Stuccoed and Painted Benches of Xochicalco, Morelos, Mexico
The cultural tradition of stuccoed and polychromatic murals in central Mexico dates back to Early Classic Teotihuacan and continued into the subsequent Epiclassic period, with the stunning murals from Cacaxtla as the most famous and well-studied example. In this paper, we present three examples of stuccoed and richly painted benches or thrones from the mayor Epiclassic site of Xochicalco in the Mexican state of Morelos. A careful iconographic and…
Expedient lithic technology in complex sedentary societies
Under the Lordly Monarchs of the North
The hieroglyphic texts of northern Belize are remarkable for their longevity, spanning from the Late Preclassic to the Late Postclassic (ca. 100b.c–a.d.1544). Together, these texts constitute an invaluable body of information that has thus far been generally overlooked and has not been integrated into larger syntheses of the region. This paper provides a diachronic review of the glyphic texts of northern Belize and contrasts them to the wider his…
Ally, Client, or Outpost? Evaluating the Relationship Between Xunantunich and Naranjo in the Late Classic Period
Investigations at Xunantunich indicate that this major Belize River Valley site rose rapidly to regional prominence during the Late Classic Hats' Chaak phase (a.d. 670–780). While the social, political, and economic reasons for Xunantunich's relatively late and rapid rise are still not fully understood, it has been suggested that this ascent was a direct result of either a patron-client relationship with, or owing to direct control by, the larger…
Tactics, Trophies, and Titles
Archaeological and epigraphic data have greatly increased our understanding of ancient Maya warfare in recent decades. Nevertheless, one of the aspects that has received relatively little attention is the disambiguation between the different types of wars waged. The procurement of human trophies as attested in the archaeological record and imagery, as well as the counts-of-captives and captive statements recorded textually, all provide tantalizin…
Applying Regional, Contextual, Ethnohistoric, and Ethnographic Approaches for Understanding the Significance of Peri-Abandonment Deposits in Western Belize
The discovery of cultural remains on or above the floors of rooms and courtyards at several Maya sites has been interpreted by some archaeologists as problematic deposits, squatter's refuse, as evidence for feasting, termination rituals,de factorefuse, or rapid abandonment as a result of warfare. Investigations by the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project have recorded similar deposits at several surface and subterranean sites in We…
The Last Hurrah
Archaeological investigations by the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project at Cahal Pech uncovered several Terminal Classic (a.d.750–900) peri-abandonment deposits and activity areas at this Belize River Valley center. The deposits contained a diverse assemblage of cultural remains located above and between collapsed architecture, associated with evidence for burning activities. In the past, archaeologists have generally interpreted…
Crowning Rulers and Years
Headdresses, as opulent markers of rank and affiliation, offer a unique opportunity to examine sociopolitical roles and offices at Teotihuacan. In particular, in light of the few surviving glyphic texts from the site, the representations of headdresses, either in isolation, as part ritual investitures, or actively worn by individuals, are in fact one of the few ways to achieve a deeper understanding of the nature, structure, and institutional asp…
Reconstructing the Formation of Peri-Abandonment Deposits at Baking Pot, Belize
Archaeological research in the Maya lowlands has identified special deposits that offer essential information about the abandonment of Classic Maya centers. We argue that some of the “problematical deposits” associated with terminal architecture may be more accurately described as peri-abandonment deposits since they temporally and behaviorally relate to the activities associated with the final use of ceremonial space. Here, we describe several p…
Political Alliances and Trade Connections Observed in the Ceramic Record of the Classic Period
Recent research carried out at the Maya site of Nakum, located in northeastern Guatemala, has brought about the discovery of a large collection of ceramic artefacts. This substantial assemblage, apart from monochrome ceramics, includes fragments of polychrome vessels that are decorated with elaborate iconographic scenes and painted hieroglyphic texts. Most of them date to the Late Classic period (ca. a.d. 600–800), which represents the peak of th…
Exotics for the Lords and Gods
Researchers who have focused attention on Maya – Spanish interaction along the Belize colonial frontier note that the relationship between these two contrasting cultures was anything but amicable. As consequence of this bellicose relationship, some authors suggest that few material goods of European origin were actually traded or integrated into frontier settlements. They also contend that whereas ethnohistoric reports describing the missionizing…
Sharper than a Serpent’s Tooth
Evidence for Maya Household Subsistence and Domestic Activities
From 1999–2005, the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project excavated Pook's Hill (PKH-1), a single plazuela group located in the Roaring Creek Valley, Cayo District, Belize. Artifacts recovered at Pook's Hill date predominantly to the Late and Terminal Classic (A.D. 700–950) and can be stratigraphically segregated into two distinct occupation phases, namely a Late Classic (A.D. 700–830) and a Terminal Classic-Early Postclassic (A.D. …
Design and Function of Lowe and Sawmill Points from the Preceramic Period of Belize
To date, 81 stemmed and barbed preceramic (Archaic) points (8000-900 B.C.) have been identified in Belize. Fifty-four are Lowe points; 21 are Sawmill points. Four more are provisionally classified as Allspice and two as Ya'axche' points. These stemmed bifaces are frequently beveled on alternate-opposite edges and demonstrate variable degrees of resharpening and reworking, which affects blade shape and tool size. Numerous functions have been attri…
Tactics, Trophies, and Titles
Archaeological and epigraphic data have greatly increased our understanding of ancient Maya warfare in recent decades. Nevertheless, one of the aspects that has received relatively little attention is the disambiguation between the different types of wars waged. The procurement of human trophies as attested in the archaeological record and imagery, as well as the counts-of-captives and captive statements recorded textually, all provide tantalizin…
Spearthrower Owl Hill
The important Classic period site of Teotihuacan is renowned for its great size, ancient influence, and intricately decorated polychrome murals. The latter are the focus of the present study, in particular the unique landscape scene from Murals 2 and 3 from Portico 1 of the North Patio of the Atetelco residential compound that depicts a row of toponymic hill signs. The three hills have identical qualifying elements embedded, identified as combina…
Material Encounters and Indigenous Transformations in the Early Colonial Americas
Material Encounters and Indigenous Transformations in the Early Colonial Americas brings together 15 archaeological case studies that offer new perspectives on colonial period interactions in the Caribbean and surrounding areas through a specific focus on material culture and indigenous agency. Readership: Scholars in archaeology and early history, graduate students, educated public with an interest in early colonial history of the Americas
The production and exchange of moulded-carved ceramics and the ‘Maya Collapse’
Contextualizing the Glyphic Texts of Tipan Chen Uitz, Cayo District, Belize
The 2011 investigations of the Caves Branch Archaeological Survey at the large and recently documented Maya site of Tipan Chen Uitz resulted in the discovery of the site's first monument with a glyphic inscription. Prior to this discovery, the site's glyphic corpus was limited to a small collection of texts rendered on fragmentary ceramics. In this paper, we describe these sherds as well as the monument (Monument 1), report on their archaeologica…
Expedient lithic technology in complex sedentary societies
Ritual responses to drought
Planting and rain-beckoning rituals are an extremely common way in which past and present human communities have confronted the risk of drought across a range of environments worldwide. In tropical environments, such ceremonies are particularly salient despite widespread assumptions that water supplies are unproblematic in such regions. We demonstrate for the first time that two common but previously under-appreciated Maya rituals are likely plan…
The Sword and the Olive Jar
This article describes the recent discovery of a sword and olive jar of European origin in two separate cave sites in the Roaring Creek Valley in central Belize. Analysis of the sword and olive jar places their date of manufacture between the late sixteenth and the mid-seventeenth century. The sociopolitical environment that prevailed along the seventeenth-century colonial frontier in Belize suggests that the sword was acquired by the Maya by pea…
Reinterpreting the Plaza De Los Glifos, La Ventilla, Teotihuacan
We present a reinterpretation of the unique group of painted glyphs of the Plaza de los Glifos, in the La Ventilla residential area (ca.a.d.300–450) situated in the ancient central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan. Based on a careful review of previous interpretations of the glyphic La Ventilla floor, the writing system, and the possible language(s) of Teotihuacan, we suggest that the majority of the 42 glyphs are not references to toponyms or t…
Situating Power and Locating Knowledge
Viewing household production in terms of a political economic balance of "give and take" circumvents difficulties related to gender attribution in archaeology and challenges timeless gender stereotypes. This chapter proposes such an archaeological approach to gender by examining the charcoal assemblages from two Late Classic period Maya archaeological sites in the upper Belize Valley of western Belize. These sites occupied distinct positions with…
Applying Regional, Contextual, Ethnohistoric, and Ethnographic Approaches for Understanding the Significance of Peri-Abandonment Deposits in Western Belize
The discovery of cultural remains on or above the floors of rooms and courtyards at several Maya sites has been interpreted by some archaeologists as problematic deposits, squatter's refuse, as evidence for feasting, termination rituals,de factorefuse, or rapid abandonment as a result of warfare. Investigations by the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project have recorded similar deposits at several surface and subterranean sites in We…
Reconstructing the Formation of Peri-Abandonment Deposits at Baking Pot, Belize
Archaeological research in the Maya lowlands has identified special deposits that offer essential information about the abandonment of Classic Maya centers. We argue that some of the “problematical deposits” associated with terminal architecture may be more accurately described as peri-abandonment deposits since they temporally and behaviorally relate to the activities associated with the final use of ceremonial space. Here, we describe several p…
Kings of the East
The importance of emblem glyphs to Maya studies has long been recognized. Among these are emblems that have yet to be conclusively matched to archaeological sites. The Water Scroll emblem glyph is one such example, although it appears numerous times in the Classic Maya written corpus between the sixth and the eighth centuries. These many references are found at a variety of sites across the lowlands, attesting to the importance of this ancient ki…
An ancient Maya ritual cache at Pook's Hill, Belize
The Preceramic and Early Ceramic Periods in Belize and the Central Maya Lowlands
This introduction to the Special Section provides a summary of our current understanding of the first humans and the first Maya in these regions and presents seven articles that examine these critical periods from varied, intersecting perspectives. The Introduction begins with a brief history of early preceramic research (primarily in northern Belize) and provides a current chronology for the Paleoindian, Archaic, and Early Preclassic periods. Th…
Political Alliances and Trade Connections Observed in the Ceramic Record of the Classic Period
Recent research carried out at the Maya site of Nakum, located in northeastern Guatemala, has brought about the discovery of a large collection of ceramic artefacts. This substantial assemblage, apart from monochrome ceramics, includes fragments of polychrome vessels that are decorated with elaborate iconographic scenes and painted hieroglyphic texts. Most of them date to the Late Classic period (ca. a.d. 600–800), which represents the peak of th…
Two Trophy Skulls from Pacbitun, Belize
Two modified skulls from Pacbitun, Belize, one with a glyphic text, match ancient Maya depictions of trophies fashioned from war captives and worn by elite warriors
An account of the kings of Kanu'l as recorded on the hieroglyphic stair of K'an II of Caracol
Many questions remain about the hieroglyphic stair dedicated in a.d. 642 by K'an II, the great king of Caracol. Constituent panels have been found at Caracol, Ucanal, Naranjo, and Xunantunich—archaeological sites spread between Guatemala and Belize. The most recently discovered Panels 3 and 4 at Xunantunich shed light on the tumultuous decades of the seventh century. Panel 4, which opened the hieroglyphic stair, makes a surprising statement from …
The Last Hurrah
Archaeological investigations by the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project at Cahal Pech uncovered several Terminal Classic (a.d.750–900) peri-abandonment deposits and activity areas at this Belize River Valley center. The deposits contained a diverse assemblage of cultural remains located above and between collapsed architecture, associated with evidence for burning activities. In the past, archaeologists have generally interpreted…
Four Preceramic Points Newly Discovered in Belize
Stemp et al. (2016) published data on 81 preceramic (Archaic) points from Belize, Central America. In this comment, we report four more chipped chert bifaces recently recovered in Belize (Figure 1). Based on metrics (Table 1), technology, and style, three are classified as Lowe and one as a Sawmill point (Kelly 1993; Lohse et al. 2006; Stemp et al. 2016)
Los glifos emblema y los lugares sobrenaturales
Los glifos emblema incorporan nombres de lugares, de los cuales algunos hacen referencia a espacios primordiales y a los escenarios de eventos mitológicos. Uno de estos glifos emblema sobrenaturales es el título k’uhul kanu’l ajaw ‘señor divino de Kanu’l’ que principalmente fue ocupado por los gobernantes de Calakmul durante el Clásico tardío. Los textos jeroglíficos en soportes cerámicos del Clásico tardío sugieren que el topónimo Kanu’l nombrab…
All that is old is new again
The close collaboration between researchers of the Institute of Cross-cultural and Regional Studies, the Copenhagen University Library (KUB) of the Royal Danish Library, and members of the Rigsters 3D Scanning team in the private sector has led to highly productive interchange and applications of some of the most recent photogrammetric modelling, especially with applications to archaeology, cultural heritage and epigraphy. In this paper, we highl…
The Stuccoed and Painted Benches of Xochicalco, Morelos, Mexico
The cultural tradition of stuccoed and polychromatic murals in central Mexico dates back to Early Classic Teotihuacan and continued into the subsequent Epiclassic period, with the stunning murals from Cacaxtla as the most famous and well-studied example. In this paper, we present three examples of stuccoed and richly painted benches or thrones from the mayor Epiclassic site of Xochicalco in the Mexican state of Morelos. A careful iconographic and…
Survey, Settlement, and Population History at the Ancient Maya Site of Pacbitun, Belize
Survey and excavations of mounds on the outskirts of the site of Pacbitun in western Belize provide insights to the ancient Maya settlement pattern at this medium-sized regional center. This research employed two methods: analysis of structural remains from four separate 1000 m transect surveys, and a subsequent complete (100%) survey of intervening and adjacent quadrant areas. The overlap of quadrant zones with portions of the transect units per…
Situating Power and Locating Knowledge
Viewing household production in terms of a political economic balance of "give and take" circumvents difficulties related to gender attribution in archaeology and challenges timeless gender stereotypes. This chapter proposes such an archaeological approach to gender by examining the charcoal assemblages from two Late Classic period Maya archaeological sites in the upper Belize Valley of western Belize. These sites occupied distinct positions with…
Spearthrower Owl Hill
The important Classic period site of Teotihuacan is renowned for its great size, ancient influence, and intricately decorated polychrome murals. The latter are the focus of the present study, in particular the unique landscape scene from Murals 2 and 3 from Portico 1 of the North Patio of the Atetelco residential compound that depicts a row of toponymic hill signs. The three hills have identical qualifying elements embedded, identified as combina…
Evidence for Maya Household Subsistence and Domestic Activities
From 1999–2005, the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project excavated Pook's Hill (PKH-1), a single plazuela group located in the Roaring Creek Valley, Cayo District, Belize. Artifacts recovered at Pook's Hill date predominantly to the Late and Terminal Classic (A.D. 700–950) and can be stratigraphically segregated into two distinct occupation phases, namely a Late Classic (A.D. 700–830) and a Terminal Classic-Early Postclassic (A.D. …
Reinterpreting the Plaza De Los Glifos, La Ventilla, Teotihuacan
We present a reinterpretation of the unique group of painted glyphs of the Plaza de los Glifos, in the La Ventilla residential area (ca.a.d.300–450) situated in the ancient central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan. Based on a careful review of previous interpretations of the glyphic La Ventilla floor, the writing system, and the possible language(s) of Teotihuacan, we suggest that the majority of the 42 glyphs are not references to toponyms or t…
Polydactyly and the Maya
A single right fifth metatarsal found in Tomb 1 at Peligroso, Belize exhibited a small deformity in the form of a small (7 mm) accessory digit emanating from the plantar surface at mid-shaft. This Type A postaxial polydactyly is the first archaeological example of polydactyly reported for Mesoamerica. Polydactyly is one of the more commonly reported morphological anomalies and thus its appearance in Maya populations would have been prevalent enou…
Directional layouts in central lowland Maya settlement
Contextualizing the Glyphic Texts of Tipan Chen Uitz, Cayo District, Belize
The 2011 investigations of the Caves Branch Archaeological Survey at the large and recently documented Maya site of Tipan Chen Uitz resulted in the discovery of the site's first monument with a glyphic inscription. Prior to this discovery, the site's glyphic corpus was limited to a small collection of texts rendered on fragmentary ceramics. In this paper, we describe these sherds as well as the monument (Monument 1), report on their archaeologica…
The production and exchange of moulded-carved ceramics and the ‘Maya Collapse’
The Sword and the Olive Jar
This article describes the recent discovery of a sword and olive jar of European origin in two separate cave sites in the Roaring Creek Valley in central Belize. Analysis of the sword and olive jar places their date of manufacture between the late sixteenth and the mid-seventeenth century. The sociopolitical environment that prevailed along the seventeenth-century colonial frontier in Belize suggests that the sword was acquired by the Maya by pea…
Social identity and geographic origin of Maya burials at Actun Uayazba Kab, Roaring Creek Valley, Belize
A Possible Paleoindian/Early Archaic Point from Ladyville, Belize, Central America
A biface fragment (JuaD/98/12/1) was recovered in 1998 as a surface find near Ladyville in northern Belize, Central America. Based on morphological and technological criteria, this biface is most likely preceramic and might date to the Late Paleoindian/Early Archaic period (ca. 10,000–8,000 cal yr BP). To distinguish this point fragment from the two lanceolate, Clovis-style bifaces from Ladyville, we have tentatively designated it Ladyville Wide …
Design and Function of Lowe and Sawmill Points from the Preceramic Period of Belize
To date, 81 stemmed and barbed preceramic (Archaic) points (8000-900 B.C.) have been identified in Belize. Fifty-four are Lowe points; 21 are Sawmill points. Four more are provisionally classified as Allspice and two as Ya'axche' points. These stemmed bifaces are frequently beveled on alternate-opposite edges and demonstrate variable degrees of resharpening and reworking, which affects blade shape and tool size. Numerous functions have been attri…
An ancient Maya ritual cache at Pook's Hill, Belize
Four Preceramic Points Newly Discovered in Belize
Stemp et al. (2016) published data on 81 preceramic (Archaic) points from Belize, Central America. In this comment, we report four more chipped chert bifaces recently recovered in Belize (Figure 1). Based on metrics (Table 1), technology, and style, three are classified as Lowe and one as a Sawmill point (Kelly 1993; Lohse et al. 2006; Stemp et al. 2016)
Los glifos emblema y los lugares sobrenaturales
Los glifos emblema incorporan nombres de lugares, de los cuales algunos hacen referencia a espacios primordiales y a los escenarios de eventos mitológicos. Uno de estos glifos emblema sobrenaturales es el título k’uhul kanu’l ajaw ‘señor divino de Kanu’l’ que principalmente fue ocupado por los gobernantes de Calakmul durante el Clásico tardío. Los textos jeroglíficos en soportes cerámicos del Clásico tardío sugieren que el topónimo Kanu’l nombrab…
Maya mortuary landscapes, Central Belize
The Central Belize Archaeological Survey (CBAS) was initiated in 2005 as a sub-project of the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance project (BVAR; directed by Jaime Awe) to investigate the prehistoric Maya cemetery site of Caves Branch Rockshelter. Subsequently, we began to survey other nearby cave and rockshelter sites (Hardy 2009) and to excavate the monumental civic-ceremonial centre of Deep Valley (Jordan 2008). CBAS became an independe…
Two Classic Maya ballplayer panels from Tipan Chen Uitz, Belize
Down the T’uhl Hole
Technological, metric, and microscopic use-wear analyses of the chipped chert and obsidian artifacts from the Chaa Creek chultun present a complex use-history in this underground space. Most, if not all, of the lithics are secondary refuse deposited at this location from other areas of initial production and use. The lithic sub-assemblages within the chultun represent at least two discrete deposition events of expediently produced flakes of local…
The Discovery of a Beehive and the Identification of Apiaries Among the Ancient Maya
Recently, an exceptional find was made by the Nakum Archaeological Project in an offering deposited deep within the architectural core of the Precolumbian Maya site of Nakum located in northeastern Guatemala. The form of the object and comparisons made to ethnographic analogs indicate that it is a clay beehive, most probably one of the oldest in the Maya area and in the whole of Mesoamerica. Whether the object was used for its intended function o…
Ritual responses to drought
Planting and rain-beckoning rituals are an extremely common way in which past and present human communities have confronted the risk of drought across a range of environments worldwide. In tropical environments, such ceremonies are particularly salient despite widespread assumptions that water supplies are unproblematic in such regions. We demonstrate for the first time that two common but previously under-appreciated Maya rituals are likely plan…
Kings of the East
The importance of emblem glyphs to Maya studies has long been recognized. Among these are emblems that have yet to be conclusively matched to archaeological sites. The Water Scroll emblem glyph is one such example, although it appears numerous times in the Classic Maya written corpus between the sixth and the eighth centuries. These many references are found at a variety of sites across the lowlands, attesting to the importance of this ancient ki…
Exotics for the Lords and Gods
Researchers who have focused attention on Maya – Spanish interaction along the Belize colonial frontier note that the relationship between these two contrasting cultures was anything but amicable. As consequence of this bellicose relationship, some authors suggest that few material goods of European origin were actually traded or integrated into frontier settlements. They also contend that whereas ethnohistoric reports describing the missionizing…
The origins and development of the cartographic tradition in the central Mexican highlands
More than four decades ago H.B. Nicholson compared the so-called Palace Stone from Xochicalco to a page in a Mesoamerican codex. Showing numerous calendrical dates and toponymic signs connected by a path marked by footprints the monument readily recalls the cartographic tradition that is well-known for the central Mexican highlands at the time of the Spanish conquest. In this paper we explore the Epiclassic evidence of this tradition, discussing …
Technological, use-wear, and residue analyses of obsidian blades from Classic Maya burials at Pook's Hill, Belize
Archaeology (43 works) · Geography (40 works) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (38 works) · Maya (33 works) · History (25 works) · Latin American history and culture (24 works) · Art (23 works) · Ancient history (16 works) · History (15 works) · Geology (12 works)