The Development of Sedentary Communities in the Maya Lowlands in a Comparative Perspective

Summary

It has long been known in the Andean region that the communal projects of temple constructions and public rituals played an important role in social formation during the pre-ceramic period. Recent archaeological investigations in Mesoamerica are revealing comparable processes. Various ceremonial centers in Mesoamerica appear to have developed before the establishment of maize agriculture and fully sedentary communities. At the lowland Maya center of Ceibal, Guatemala, a formal ceremonial complex was constructed at the onset of the ceramic-use period when a substantial portion of the population still retained some level of mobility. At this center, collective construction activities and communal rituals were central mechanisms that brought together diverse social groups and stimulated social changes.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• Olmec, Chavin, and Things in Between: A Comparative Approach to Emergent Complex Societies

Keywords

Spatial Coverage