Prospering in Place: Cerro Maya and the Late Preclassic Exchange Networks

Summary

Cerro Maya, located on Lowry’s Point at the southern edge of Chetumal Bay in northern Belize, sits at a strategic intersection between riverine and coastal transportation routes used by the Maya from Preclassic times onward. Evidence suggests a major dock facility was the first monumental construction undertaken during the initial Late Preclassic occupation, indicating the site was intentionally founded to mediate access to interior sites on the two principal river drainages in the region for purposes of exchange with coastal traders transporting goods from all over the Maya Lowlands. During the 100-150 years of Late Preclassic occupation, the diversity of the ceramic inventory and comparative richness of the material remains evinces interactions with sites on the Northern Plains of Yucatan, as well as central Peten and the Central Karstic Uplands. Cerro Maya flourished during this era, developing from a small village of perishable structures next to a monumental dock into an important center with monumental architecture remembered well into the Postclassic era.

SAA 2015 abstracts made available in tDAR courtesy of the Society for American Archaeology and Center for Digital Antiquity Collaborative Program to improve digital data in archaeology. If you are the author of this presentation you may upload your paper, poster, presentation, or associated data (up to 3 files/30MB) for free. Please visit http://www.tdar.org/SAA2015 for instructions and more information.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Ports, Trails, and Waterways: Trade and Economy in the Ancient Maya World

Keywords

Spatial Coverage