Cahal Pech – Belize

Posted on 01/09/2023 by Michael

Cahal Pech

Cahal Pech – Belize

Location

This site is located on the outskirts of the towns San Ignacio and Santa Elena, in the Cayo district. There is easy access from San Ignacio to the archaeological site, which is situated on a hilltop overlooking the road to the town of Benque Viejo del Carmen. The complex lies on the west bank on the River Macal and occupies a strategic position with control over the valley. The name Cahal Pech is a mixture of Mopan and Yucatec Maya, meaning ‘tick’, an insect that can be found in abundance in the surrounding pasture land. The central area of the site is composed of 34 structures and occupies a surface area of close on one hectare. The groups include various residential constructions for the elite class and several pyramid platforms with temples. The buildings are situated around seven courts or closed plazas, which include a palatial section. There are two ball courts, five smooth or unadorned stelae, an altar and a temascal or steam bath (Structure B-5). Part of the site has been partially restored following important archaeological finds denoting construction phases ranging from 1200 BC to AD 800. Cahal Pech has a visitor centre, a site museum with interesting pieces from the area and a rest room.

Site description

Access is from the north-east and the first area entered is Plaza B, the largest on the site. Structures B1, B2 and B3 seal the west side of the plaza. According to Joyce Kelly, this group formed an E-Group complex or astronomical marker of the solstices and equinoxes, like the one at Uaxactun in Guatemala. A royal burial from the Late Classic (AD 600 to 800) was discovered at Structure B1 with grave goods containing objects made from jade, carved shell and bone, ceramic vessels and a jade and shell mosaic belt mask. On the south side of the plaza lies structure B4, an elongated platform with a stairway at the front and mask remains on the balustrades. The explorations conducted by Joseph Ball and Jaime Awe have revealed a long occupational sequence, commencing in 1200 BC, which means that the site was one of the earliest settlements in the region. The reconstructed facade we see today dates from between 600 and 300 BC. The south-west corner of Plaza B leads to Plaza F, which has various low platforms that have not yet been restored. On the west side of this small plaza a double-flight stairway leads to the residential Groups E and D in the south-central area of the site. This section has been partially restored and contains excellent examples of Maya vaults and rooms with elegant benches for resting, not unlike those depicted in polychrome Maya vases.

The west side of Plaza B leads to Plaza A, passing through Structure A2, which fulfils the function of a portal. This elongated structure with several rooms and restricted access was called the Audiencia, probably having been used for administrative and civic functions as well as serving as a hall where the ruling class would meet or receive important emissaries. Plaza A displays an elegant layout and an exclusive palatial complex. This section, which is connected at the rear to Plazas E and D, provides visitors with an idea of the layout of architectural spaces for the Maya elite, Structure A1 is the tallest construction at Cahal Pech, standing 24 m high. Visitors can climb to the top of it for a view of the surrounding elite buildings. The largest construction at the site is from the Middle Classic (AD 500), but its sub-structures were built in the Late Preclassic (400 BC-AD 250). On the west side of Plaza A a passage leads to the rear area containing a draining system and various terraces sloping down to the west ball court, which has not yet been excavated. This section displays a considerable difference in ground level, indicating Cahal Pech’s strategic and defence position. Various roads have been discovered near the site leading to outlying residential groups. The site is thought to have been occupied from 1200 BC to AD 900, when it was vacated. A possible reason for its vacation was the growth of other powerful cities in the area, such as Buenavista, Baking Pot, Pacbitun and Xunantunich.

From: ‘The Maya: an architectural and landscape guide’, produced jointly by the Junta de Andulacia and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, 2010, pp244-246.

Getting there:

From San Ignacio. The turn off to the site is at the roundabout on the western edge of town (the road heading towards the Belize/Guatemala border). From the roundabout head south and go up the steep hill in front of you. Once at the top the entrance to the site is to your left. There is a small visitor centre giving a bot of a background to the location with a few artefacts recovered from past excavations.

GPS:

17d 08’ 45” N

89d 04’ 26” W

Entrance:

B$10

Xunantunich – Belize

Posted on 31/08/2023 by Michael

Xunantunich

More on the Maya

Xunantunich – Belize

Location

The name of the site, recently christened by the inhabitants of the nearby town of San Jose Sucotz in the Cayo district, means ‘stone lady’. The site was the civic-ceremonial centre of the regional capital and controlled the important trade route between the River Mopan and the River Belize, the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula and the Gulf of Honduras. The settlement was established on a hilltop near the river. The developed section consists of four main groups, AD, with the largest pyramids – possibly platforms for temples – situated in Group A; Groups B, C and D correspond to elite residential groups. The Xunantunich ruins are situated on the tourist trail between Belize and the Tikal ruins in Guatemala. The site is located on the edge of the Western Highway, opposite the Maya town of San Jose Sucotz and the beginning of the River Mopan rapids. Access to the site is via the river on a small human-powered ferry. The protected area of the archaeological site has become the only patch of rainforest, due to the excessive felling of trees for cultivation and livestock breeding in this section of the Maya Mountain foothills. The site has a small museum and rest rooms for visitors. On the banks of the River Mopan are several small establishments selling brightly-coloured Maya handicrafts.

Site description

Structure A6 or El Castillo. At 40 m, this is the highest pyramid on the site and its present-day appearance is the result of successive visible modifications to various parts of the platform. The front displays a monumental stairway leading to the first terrace, approximately 10 m above the plaza, where precincts with numerous entrances were built; continuing behind these constructions is the great accumulation of stones and earth that supports the temples of two subsequent building phases, the top one tiring the most recent. The lower temple is adorned with stucco masks, modelled on the friezes at the east mid west ends; these date from an earlier period than the upper rooms. Nowadays the friezes have been covered with authentic copies to protect them while simultaneously exhibiting them to the public. The frieze on the east side is composed of three large terrestrial, solar and Venus-related masks, with the signs for the moon and day between them. Situated Above these records are niches framed by Venus symbols; seated inside the niches are the figures of people who were decapitated towards the end of the Classic period (AD 800-900). Judging from their position, these figures may well represent the Bacabs or ‘skybearers’. The frieze on the west side displays just one and a half of these masks symbolising the sun god. Situated between them is a square frame around an image of the fire god Chaac or Kah’k Chaak, which in turn is framed by bands adorned with the woven mat design, Pop in the Maya language. The upper record also shows the image of a mutilated figure, possibly corresponding to a pauwahtun, as in the frieze on the opposite side.

Group A. This ceremonial group is situated north of the main platform and is arranged around a rectangular plaza delimited on its north side by a palatial complex with vaulted bays and various chambers around a central courtyard. Situated at the east end of the plaza are three pyramid platforms and two low constructions. At .1 much later date the pyramid at the north end gained n small two-bay temple at the front, which has lost its roof, and two stelae and altars were erected inside; the one in the rear bay has survived almost intact, while the front bay still displays a circular altar inside a quadrangular box. At the exact centre of the plaza stands a pyramid platform with four stepped sections the temple at the top has disappeared almost completely – which divides the original plaza into two sections; on the west side, near the north-west corner, lies one of the elongated platforms of Ball Court 2. The west side of the main plaza is delimited by a pyramid whose west side supports one of the platforms of Ball Court 1; the north end of the play area is sealed by a low retaining wall, while the south end is open. Another two medium-sized mounds and the west platform of the second ball court run along the west side of the plaza.

Group B. Situated north-west of the ball court and excavated by Thompson in 1938, this group corresponds to an elite residential unit, nowadays in a poor state of conservation due to the fact that the excavations have remained exposed – without having consolidated the walls – since Thompson’s day. In the 1970s Elizabeth Benson and David Pendergast discovered evidence to suggest that the buildings were still inhabited during the Early Postclassic period (AD 900 to 1200). Half-way along the path leading from Ball Court I to Group B it is possible to see two granite spheres, which would almost certainly have been used in connection with the ritual ball game.

Groups C and D. These are residential groups situated to the south and south-east of El Castillo; judging from the ball court structure that forms part of Group C, this could also have fulfilled civic and ceremonial functions. Eight stelae and two circular altars have been identified in the Group A plaza; two stelae have dates from baktun 10, suggesting that the site continued to be occupied during the 10th century, by which time several important cities in the central lowlands had been abandoned.

From: ‘The Maya: an architectural and landscape guide’, produced jointly by the Junta de Andulacia and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, 2010, pp246-248.

Xunantunich

1. El Castillo; 2. Plaza A-1; 3. Plaza A-2; 4. Plaza A-3; 5. Ball Court 2; 6. Ball Court 1; 7. Group B; 8. group C.

Getting there:

From San Ignacio. You can either take an infrequent bus (B$2) or a collective taxi (B$4) to San Jose Sucotz. From there you cross the River Mopan on a quaint human-powered ferry (free). From the ferry it’s about a mile to the site entrance (15-20 minute walk – uphill).

GPS:

17d 05’ 20” N

89d 08’ 30 W

Entrance:

B$10

More on the Maya

Topoxte – Guatemala

Posted on 29/08/2023 by Michael

Topoxte

More on the Maya

Topoxte – Guatemala

Location

This site is situated south of Lake Yaxha, on an island or peninsula, depending on the level of the lake. The vegetation on the island is controlled regularly and boasts very pleasant spaces that make it easy to get from one plaza to another. Access to the site is via boat from the Yaxha visitor centre, where there is a small interpretation centre with a scale model and wooden replicas of pieces made by local craftsmen. Topoxte belongs to the Yaxha-Nakum-Naranjo National Park and great importance is attached to the conservation of the nature reserve.

History of the explorations

Like Yaxha, Topoxte was discovered in 1904 by Teobert Maler, who mapped the main plaza and took photographs of Building C. Subsequently, Maurice de Perigny, Silvanus Morley, William Bullard and other researchers visited the site. The explorations and restoration works conducted by the IDAEH-KAVA-DAI concluded in 1996. Topoxte has a longer history than both Yaxha and Tikal as archaeologists have discovered ten construction stages underneath the Main Plaza, with an occupational timeline stretching from the Middle Preclassic to the Middle Postclassic (800 BC-AD 1450). During the excavation of the south-west section of the Main Plaza in 1994 a burial from the Classic period was discovered under Building A. Tomb 49 revealed extraordinary examples of Maya paraphernalia, including various jade objects that are currently on display at the National Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology in Guatemala City. Meanwhile, a stone turtle covered with stucco and blue, white and black paint was found inside Building E; emerging from the jaws of the turtle is a human face, a characteristic motif of the latter days of the Maya civilisation.

Site description

The island measures 400×300 m and adopts the form of a half moon. It has nearly 100 constructions from the Middle Postclassic (up to AD 1450). The architectural spaces are organised on terraces around two raised sections. The most important part of the site is the group of buildings in the Main Plaza, which boasts the best preserved Postclassic buildings in the whole of Peten (buildings C, D, E and G). Here, the buildings had flat slabs of wood and lime cement, now lost, vertical stepped platforms and stairways with balustrades culminating in finial blocks. The facades have columns or pillars, and three or more entrances. Opposite the main buildings are platforms with stelae and smooth cylindrical altars.

Oscar Quintana Samayoa

From: ‘The Maya: an architectural and landscape guide’, produced jointly by the Junta de Andulacia and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, 2010, pp216-219.

Topoxte

Building A; 2. Building B; 3. Building C; 4. Building D; 5. Building E; 6. Building F; 7. Building G; 8. Building H; 9. Building I; 10. Building J.

How to get there:

Topoxte can only be visited as part of a visit to Yaxja. After leaving the National Park entrance you have to take the left hand fork at the first junction which takes you down to the lakeside. You will probably have to get the guardians at the Yaxja site to call in advance so there is someone to operate the launch. Topoxte is on a small island on the far side of the lake. The launch will wait as you explore the small site. The site is really only one square about a 10 minute walk from the dock.