Maya Pilgrimage, Ritual Landscapes, and Relations with Deities in Chiapas, Mexico

Palka, Joel W.; Toledo, Josuhé Lozada; González, Ramón Folch

doi:10.1007/978-3-031-32209-9_10

Cited by 1 publication

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“…Their characteristics, especially their locations on rural travel routes, abundant water, buildings for sleeping and storage, fortifications for safety, trade in exotic items, small populations and public religious shrines can be identified through survey, excavation and artifacts. Postclassic sites dot the Tabasco plain (Scholes & Roys 1968), but few coeval sites have been encountered in adjacent northern Chiapas, including along the Usumacinta and Tulijá river routes (Palka & Lozada Toledo 2018). One site was discovered along a secondary long-distance travel, trade and pilgrimage route at rural Mensabak, Chiapas, Mexico (Palka 2014).…”

Section: Mesoamerican Trade Caravans and Stopover Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Small Rural Travel Stopover at the Late Postclassic Maya Site of Mensabak, Chiapas, Mexico: Overland Trade, Cross-Cultural Interaction and Social Cohesion in the Countryside

Palka¹

2023

CAJ

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A small rural stopover along overland Maya and Aztec trade and travel routes was identified in surveys and excavations at adjacent settlements and shrines at Mensabak, Chiapas, Mexico. This collection of Late Postclassic to Spanish conquest-era (c.ad 1350–1650) Maya sites are similar in function to rural Old World and Andean caravan stopovers, such as caravanserai and way stations, where travellers and traders obtained supplies, trading partners, safety, solidarity through ritual and travel information along long-distance land routes. These sites are similar to trading ports and pilgrimage centres, but they are smaller, located in the countryside, not often managed by regional states, and have scaled-down economic exchange with fewer exotic trade items. Stopovers often include landscape and rock-art shrines for collective ritual among foreign travellers and local populations. While investigators have researched the anthropological importance of overland routes, caravans and trade centres, less attention has been given to stopover sites in the countryside. This article discusses the archaeological signatures and outlines the comparative social, economic and ritual implications of small rural stopover sites that united people on the road.

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Section: Mesoamerican Trade Caravans and Stopover Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%