The Origins of Sociopolitical Complexity in Western Belize: Investigating Preclassic Occupation in the Site Core of Xunantunich

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Previous studies in the Maya area indicate many lowland Maya site cores developed gradually with continuous construction and modifications extending back to the Preclassic era (1200 BC–AD 300). In spite of this developmental sequence, few sites exhibiting Preclassic transition phases have been intensively investigated. One example is the Belize Valley site of Xunantunich, where more than a century’s worth of research in the site core has been dedicated primarily to interpreting the political and socioeconomic role of the site during the Late to Terminal Classic period. Because of these previous research biases, little is known of the Preclassic occupational component of the site core. In an effort to address this omission, we conducted a series of excavations within the site core during the 2022 field season of the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance (BVAR) Project. These investigations revealed Preclassic architecture and Jenney Creek Phase (900–300 BC) ceramics, as well as Preclassic ceramic figurines. In this presentation, we review evidence of Preclassic occupation in Xunantunich’s site core and provide results of our recent investigations in Plazas A-I, A-II, and A-III. Our findings help enhance the understanding of the construction and development of the site core of Xunantunich during Preclassic times.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 36984.0