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Early Monumentality in the Belize River Valley: Excavations of a Preclassic E-Group at Cahal Pech, Belize

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 January 2021

Claire E. Ebert Open the ORCID record for Claire E. Ebert [Opens in a new window] ,
James McGee  and
Jaime J. Awe
Claire E. Ebert*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Pittsburgh, WWPH, 3302 S Bouquet St, Pittsburgh, PA15260, USA
James McGee
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Northern Arizona University, 5 E. McConnell Drive, Flagstaff, AZ86011-5200, USA
Jaime J. Awe
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Northern Arizona University, 5 E. McConnell Drive, Flagstaff, AZ86011-5200, USA
*
([email protected], corresponding author)
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Abstract

Recent investigations at Cahal Pech, Belize, documented a previously unrecognized Middle Preclassic (700–500 cal BC) E-Group complex. Located in an open public plaza, the monumental complex likely functioned as a forum for communal public events. In the Late Preclassic, the E-Group was replaced by an ancestor shrine where several royal tombs are located, as well as buildings separating public civic space from private elite space. These shifts in monumental construction temporally track the development of ideological manifestations of power and provide evidence for the formalization of dynastic rulership by an emerging elite class.

Investigaciones recientes en el sitio de Cahal Pech, Belice, han documentado un complejo Grupo Tipo E desconocido del Preclásico medio (~700-500 aC). Situado en una plaza pública, el complejo monumental funcionaba como un foro para eventos públicos. En el Preclásico tardío, el Grupo Tipo E fue reemplazado por un santuario ancestral donde se encuentran varias tumbas reales, así como edificios que delimitan el espacio cívico público del espacio privado de élite. Estos cambios en la construcción monumental rastrean temporalmente el desarrollo de manifestaciones ideológicas del poder y proporcionan evidencia para la formalización del gobierno dinástico por parte de una clase de élite emergente.

Keywords

Preclassic Mayamonumental architectureE-GroupCahal PechBelizePreclásico Mayaarquitectura monumentalGrupo Tipo ECahal PechBelice
Type
Report
Information
Latin American Antiquity , Volume 32 , Issue 1 , March 2021 , pp. 209 - 217
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Society for American Archaeology

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