Balam Ku – Campeche – Mexico

Posted on 17/09/2023 by Michael

Balam Ku

Balamku – Campeche

Location

This site is situated 100 km east of Escarcega and 3 km north-east of Conhuas. The distance from Chetumal is approximately 180 km. The archaeological area comprises several architectural groups distributed around medium-height jungle zones. To the north of the buildings open to visitors is an aguada, which had an important function in pre-Hispanic times. The pre-Columbian site was christened by the archaeologist Florentino Garcia Cruz, who made his first survey at the beginning of the 1990s, prompted by various episodes of plundering in the area. The name chosen means temple (ku) of the jaguar (balam), a reference to a striking stucco motif at the site.

History of the explorations

Garcia Cruz and Ramon Carrasco of the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) were the first people to study the site and define the archaeological area. Carrasco conducted work on several constructions in the central architectural precinct and restored the volume of the building containing stucco-modelled elements. In 1995 a team of French researchers led by Dominique Michelet and Pierre Becquelin embarked on a series of excavations and consolidated various buildings in the South Group.

Timeline, site description and monuments

The occupation of the Maya city stretches from several hundred years prior to the Common Era to approximately the 10th century AD.

South group.

In the middle of this area stands a pyramid platform approximately 10 m high. The various buildings arranged around it form four plazas. The pyramid was built during the Early Classic (AD 250-600) and was subsequently covered by another one; although this later construction has not survived, its fillings facilitated the preservation of the present day monument. The upper part is occupied by a temple whose facade provided the basis for a giant zoomorphic mask – one of the earliest examples of this type of facade in the region. This important architectural feature, symbolising the powerful deity Itzamnaaj, gradually evolved to cover entire building facades. The finest and best-preserved examples of whole zoomorphic facades can be found at Chicanna in southern Campeche and Tabasqueno in the Chenes region. The northern section of the South Group contains several examples of elite dwellings: masonry constructions clad with carefully cut veneer stones and even forming stacks of masks around the main entrances. Various of the rooms have broad benches. The constructions are situated at the cardinal points and form rectangular plazas, in keeping with the typical Mesoamerican pattern.

Central group.

This comprises 30 or so monumental buildings distributed around three large plazas. Explorations have been conducted on several buildings that indicate the entrance to the architectural group and beyond them three pyramid platforms whose sides are now abutted as a result of their gradual expansion. The early constructions are clad with carefully cut veneer stones in the Rio Bec style; it is still possible to see rounded corners, masonry columns at the entrances to rooms, some with benches, but the vaulted roofs and elaborate stairways flanked by balustrades have been lost. We then proceed south to a plaza whose west side displays a broad stairway leading to a large building that has not yet been explored. Three platforms stand at the north end of the plaza. The excavations conducted confirmed architecture principally of the Peten style, developed during the early centuries of the Common Era.

Pyramid platform in the north-west section.

It was this structure that led to the original exploration of the site. Various episodes of plundering had dismantled the final construction stage, exposing a large proportion of a sub-structure whose frieze had once been decorated with interesting stucco-modelled motifs. The various elements have preserved most of their original colour, which is mainly red, but there are also traces of cherry red, black and blue. The motifs found in this building correspond to the frieze of its main facade. These are situated above three entrances and symbolically display opposing and complementary aspects of the ancient Maya world view. Originally, the lower section of the frieze depicted four imposing images of Cauac or the Earth Monster, one for each cardinal point. These alternate with images of jaguars, animals associated with the underworld. The upper part of each Earth Monster has a large crack, from which sprout toads on the left and crocodiles on the right. The reptiles and amphibians evoke the damp, fertile earth, recalling the original sea from which the legendary Maya world emerged; they represent the transition between the abode of the gods and that of human beings. From the amphibians’ jaws sprout sacred lords, the governors of the Classic period, seated on jaguar skin thrones. These are flanked by the stems of water lilies or other flowers, elements that indicate abundance because high-ranking officials were responsible for providing their subjects with well being and everything they needed. The dignitaries’ headdresses are poorly preserved but must have displayed zoomorphic figures associated with deities. Overall, the frieze shows the emergence of a legendary world of governors closely tied to the deities and their powerful religious symbols. Balamku had stone hieroglyphic inscriptions but to date only a few greatly decayed stelae have been found.

Importance and relations

The extraordinary stucco frieze at Balamku is one of the finest examples of the Early Classic iconography of the Maya world. It tells us of the governors’ complex world view and their association with a supernatural world from which they believed their political authority emanated. To a certain extent, the stucco motifs are comparable with those of the frieze at Placeres, a site in the southernmost part of Campeche; this frieze is thought to have been dismantled by plunderers but has fortunately been recovered and is now on display in the Maya Room of the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City. Meanwhile, the monuments at Balamku demonstrate the site’s former influence over the surrounding area, where it coexisted alongside other important sites such as Becan, 40 km to the east; Oxpemul and Calakmul, in the south; Silvituc, around and on the island in the Centenario Lagoon, 40 km to the west; and Nadzcaan, a vast city situated some 25 km to the north.

From: ‘The Maya: an architectural and landscape guide’, produced jointly by the Junta de Andulacia and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, 2010, pp324-326.

Balam Ku

1. Plaza A; 2. Plaza B; 3. Plaza C; 4. Plaza D.

How to get there:

There are 4 or 5 buses, each way, which do the run from Xpuil and Escarcega, passing through the settlement of Conhaus. The approach road to the site is to the west of Conhaus. Then there’s a just under three kilometre walk to the site.

GPS:

18d 33′ 42″ N

89d 57′ 06″

Entrance:

M$70

The Petén Regional Museum of the Mayan World

Posted on 18/08/2023 by Michael

Museum of the Mayan World

The Petén Regional Museum of the Mayan World

Tayasal Archaeological site –

…. is very much a working site and, in the summer of 2023, there was little for the visitor to see. However, a very complex walkway was close to com0pletion at the time of my visit so there are obviously plans to make the area more visitor friendly.

Location

This site played an important role in the history of the region and is situated at the end of a peninsula, immediately north of the island of Flores. Tayasal lies north of the village of San Miguel, some 150 m above sea level.

History of the explorations

There is some controversy about the location of Tayasal, the ancient capital of the Itza group. Maler was the first person to identify it, in 1910, on the peninsula of the name, although other researchers defended the hypothesis that it must have been situated on the island that the present-day city of Flores occupies. Although there is still a certain amount of doubt, the majority now believe that the island of Flores is too small for the number of settlers that the Spanish conquistadors described in the ancient city, while Tayasal is a much larger and more imposing city with plazas and groups of buildings that accommodated dwellings for thousands of people. The balance is therefore tipped in favour of the Tayasal peninsula.

Thanks to the Fifth Letter of Hernan Cortes to the Emperor Charles V, we know that he and his army passed through Tayasal in 1525, en route from Mexico to Honduras to quash a rebellion. Subsequently, there were several forays by Spanish monks and spokesmen to conquer the land, which were all to no avail until 13 March 1597 when Martin de Urzua conquered Tayasal and the environs, subjecting the population to the new political order of the Spanish crown. We also know that prior to this conquest the Spaniards made several visits to the central area of Peten, including an exploratory phase, a propaganda phase and a commercial and military phase, and that all of these took place between Cortes’s visit in 1525 and Urzua’s arrival, the first investigations at the site were conducted in 1910 and 1938 by Teobert Maler, followed by an expedition from the Carnegie Institution in Washington and another by Sylvanus Morley. All of these reported the existence of pyramid temples, temples on platforms mid simple platforms, palaces, astronomical observatories, ball courts, platforms for dancing, plazas with columns, steam baths, adoratoriums, monumental stairways, platforms for theatrical events, causeways, bridges, aqueducts, cemeteries, tombs, ossuaries and stadiums for public entertainment. In 1921 and 1922 the researchers at the Carnegie Institution determined that the structures at the west end of the peninsula were mainly from the Late Classic, although they also recovered odd materials from the Post classic. This was reaffirmed in 1986 when Miguel Rivera Dorado excavated Structure T-100 in Group 23 and determined the existence of construction and funerary features from the Early and Middle Post classic. During the same campaign Stela 3, dated to the Early Classic, was uncovered north of T-100.

Various studies have related the architectural features of the Post classic structures with those at Mayapan, based on the fact that they include benches along lateral and rear walls that were used for family fidoratoriums. The elongated buildings and open, more elaborate halls have masonry columns that once supported roofs made of perishable materials. These were found near the main temples. In 2004 new excavations were conducted in Group 23, specifically structures T-95 and T-99B, and the conclusion was reached that both contain Post classic architecture. T95 is a rectangular platform on which stands a room with three west-facing entrances, while T-99B is also a rectangular platform but with C-shaped benches and open at the front. Burial 1, discovered under the central stairway, contains a fragment of a vessel that confirms the site’s occupation in the middle or late Post classic. Other similar constructions have been found in central Peten, at sites such as Topoxte, Zacpeten, Macanche, Ixlu, Candelaria and Punta Nictun.

Pre-Hispanic history

This site represents the last enclave in the Maya region which after several failed attempts was finally subjected to the Spanish army in 1697, much later than the conquest of the Guatemalan plateau region in 1524 and the north of the Yucatan Peninsula in 1531. Tayasal, the capital of the Itza group, therefore had a much later occupation that the other sites in the region. Archaeological research supports the hypothesis of a long occupation stretching from the Middle Preclassic (800 BC) to the beginning of the 18th century.

Site description

The site was declared a National Monument by government decree on 24 April 1931. It comprises 11 sections: 1. Tayasal Main Group. 2. North Central Tayasal. 3. Tayasal Cove. 4. North-West Tayasal. 5. West Tayasal. 6. South-East Tayasal. 7. Trapiche Point. 8. West San Miguel. 9. San Miguel Aguada or natural depression. 10. East San Miguel. 11. El Jobito. The protected area is bounded to the north and west by Lake Peten Itza and to the east and south by the village of San Miguel. The site boasts more than 200 structures associated with ceremonial plazas and residential groups. There are plazas with large, open courtyards for public spaces, palace-type buildings, pyramids, residential precincts, fortified walls and a cenote or natural well.

Juan Antonio Valdes and Miriam Salas

From: ‘The Maya: an architectural and landscape guide’, produced jointly by the Junta de Andulacia and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, 2010, pp226-228

Getting there:

From Flores. Take the colectivo launch from the closest point of the island to San Miguel. Cost – Q10. The site is off the road that comes up from the dock. Turn left at the corner of the football pitch and then left again after about 200m.

There’s not a great deal to see at Tayasal as what is of interest is currently a working archaeological site. There are many ‘explorations’ taking place around the central area. There are obviously plans to make the site more visitor friendly as in the summer of 2023 the authorities were in the process of constructing a very extensive wooden walkway system which would allow visitors to look down on what had been already uncovered.

Petén Regional Museum of the Mayan World

However, what is of interest is the town’s museum. This is in a structure which is also the towns cultural centre. This is about a 15 minute walk from the landing stage for the launches from Flores. Go up the steep street directly behind the Stone Horse (at the dock) and keep straight ahead. The Museum is on the left hand side – just after a bar with a Gallo sign outside on the right.

Entrance is free.

Be careful if visiting on a Monday. Most state museums are closed that day.

The Museo Regional del Sureste del Peten – Dolores

Posted on 09/08/2023 by Michael

Museo Regional del Sureste del Peten – Dolores

The Museo Regional del Sureste del Peten – Dolores

The principal regional museum is situated in the town of Nuestra Senora de Dolores, at km 401 on the road from Guatemala to the city of Flores, the capital of the Peten department. It opened in 2005 with the mission of preserving and disseminating information about the region’s archaeological heritage.

South-eastern Peten lies in the Maya Mountains in a natural beauty spot comprising diverse elements such as the rivers Xa’an and Mopan, which include natural waterfalls and drops. It also boasts a large cultural legacy thanks to numerous archaeological sites in the area and ruins from the ancient Maya civilisation, some of which have been declared protected national parks by the Guatemalan Directorate-General of Cultural and Natural Heritage.

The museum is situated in the town centre, near the colonial Catholic church, on a natural elevation with magnificent views over the valley. The cultural area occupies two levels: a landscaped square where outdoor cultural activities are organised and the museum itself, which is accessed by a flight of steps at the centre of the main facade.

The museum is divided into four sections: an administrative section and three exhibition sections. The permanent archaeological exhibition features 22 sites and three caves in the region, represented by 129 artefacts, while the chronological spectrum ranges from the Preclassic period (900 BC) to the Postclassic and beyond (AD 1000-1524). The exhibits were all found during excavations conducted as part of a national programme called the Archaeological Atlas of Guatemala, and many of them correspond to offerings associated with burials discovered in residential groups and the core areas of the different sites.

The first room is dedicated to pottery, although there is one display case with materials such as stone, shell and bone. The exhibits vary from projectile points, knives and flint eccentrics to marine material represented by polished star-shaped plaques. There are also several rings, a flower-shaped bezote (ring worn in the upper lip) and a conch necklace. One of the most fascinating pieces in this case is an alabaster vase from an offering at Sacul. The pottery exhibits include incense burners and polychrome globular cooking pots, bowls, plates, dishes and large containers, some of them with iconographic scenes. The last section of the room is given over to a slate sculpture, Stela 1 from Ixtonton.

The remaining sculptures are distributed between the second room and the entrance hall. There are 31 limestone pieces, including fragments of stelae, anthropomorphic heads, various dignitary torsos and two panels, one from Ixtutx composed of six carved fragments, and a four-piece panel from Machaquila. The museum is within easy reach by car or bus from Flores (82 km), and Dolores offers hotels, restaurants, petrol stations, transport routes, banks, etc. Opening hours are Tuesday to Sunday, from 8 am to 4 pm.

Lilian Corzo

From: ‘The Maya: an architectural and landscape guide’, produced jointly by the Junta de Andulacia and the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, 2010, pp232-233

This is a small, modern museum which displays its small collection in a clear and uncluttered manner. Every object is labelled but the information is only in Spanish.

Helpful staff. Closed on Monday’s (as are most state museums) but they might well open if you arrive when there are people around.

Getting there;

Follow the straight as a die road, that goes through the centre of the town, until it comes to a T-junction where you go up hill two blocks, then turning right at the sign for the dirt road to Ixkun. It’s on the left, up a flight of steps with a fenced area at the top.