Modeling the social demography of a Classic Maya city-state, the case of El Perú-Waka’, Guatemala

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

This paper attempts to model Classic Maya society and social dynamics, as expressed at the ancient city-state of El Perú-Waka, Guatemala. Large-scale ceramic analysis, combined with traditional excavation and an ambitious test-pitting program, allow for novel perspectives on the internal functioning of this complex Native American society. The urban society there is characterized by social heterogeneity, with different kinds of social units operating at the time period. These units include noble houses, patrilineages, wealthy commoners, and still others, all present on a socially diverse landscape. Yet, these units changed over time, as shifting historical circumstances favored some modes of social organization over others. This becomes apparent in the archaeological record, especially with newly developed ceramic seriation techniques, which allow for close chronological control of such changes. The composition of the ancient society changed over time, and the ceramics allow for the partial documentation of such change. Thus, at least partially, they allow for the modeling of the social demography of this Classic Maya city-state.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 40340.0