Feeding the Gods, Calling the Rains: Archaeobotanical Remains from a Monumental Fire Shrine at El Perú-Waka’, Guatemala

Summary

The discovery of a fire shrine atop the adosada of Structure M13-1 at El Perú-Waka’ supports the archaeological and epigraphic records which have at various places in the Maya region (including Waka’) made reference to the arrival in AD 378 of Siyaj K’ak’. This event resulted in the introduction of the fire shrine cult, glossed as Wite Naah in Mayan, from Teotihuacan to the Maya Lowlands. M13-1’s cal AD 7th century fire shrine is the final phase of the main temple’s fronting platform. Careful collection of soil samples and the subsequent archaeobotanical analysis makes this context unique as no other such fire shrines have been fully sampled for plant remains. These new data provide additional avenues for exploring rituals carried out at these fire shrines. The plant remains, understood as offerings to the gods, include wood, diverse types of seeds, flowers, and incense, and reflect a special concern with themes of fertility, water, and agricultural abundance. This unique deposit provides new insights into the ritual use of plants among the ancient Maya; activities that continue today.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage