Preclassic and Classic Maya Interregional and Long-Distance Exchange: A Diachronic Analysis of Obsidian Artifacts From Ceibal, Guatemala

Aoyama, Kazuo

doi:10.1017/laq.2017.2

Cited by 11 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…Evidence for the production of stone tools, including obsidian blades, is most prevalent at these locations. Artisans specializing in blade production would have needed to acquire the raw obsidian to produce these items, and it appears the Ceibal crafters had a steady supply of these materials based on the quantity of lithic items found across the site during the Middle Preclassic period (Aoyama 2017a, 2017b). The microwear analysis indicates that the tools themselves were used primarily for shell, bone, and meat/hide processing, based on the preponderance of marks pertaining to these activities at the majority of the middens.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Aoyama studied 86,624 lithic artifacts (1,802,882.3 g) recovered from different parts of Ceibal, including the central part of the settlement around Group A, outlying residential groups, and the nearby minor centers (Aoyama 2017a, 2017b; Aoyama et al 2017a, 2017b). Of these lithic artifacts, the CPAP has collected 37,116 chipped stone artifacts from unmixed Preclassic contexts, including 30,500 artifacts from the Middle Preclassic contexts.…”

Section: Overview Of the Materials Assemblagesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Lithic and Faunal Evidence for Craft Production Among the Middle Preclassic Maya at Ceibal, Guatemala

Sharpe

Aoyama

2022

Ancient Mesoam

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This study examines artifact production using lithic, animal bone, and shell materials at the lowland Maya site of Ceibal, Guatemala, to explore the emergence and societal role of early crafting specialists. During the Middle Preclassic period (1000–350 b.c.), ancient Maya society went through a critical transition to sedentary settlements, including the development of large-scale monumental construction endeavors for ceremonial activities, increasingly nucleated settlement patterns, and the differential control of prestigious objects. Excavations across Ceibal recovered one of the largest Middle Preclassic assemblages of lithic and faunal material to date. We examine these materials in order to understand the nature of their manufacturing processes, the association between lithic production and bone/shell processing for meat and artifact production, and compare these activities with evidence from other Middle Preclassic sites and from the later Classic period. We find that Middle Preclassic middens are often disturbed or incorporated into later construction episodes over many generations, making the identification of such activities difficult, although not impossible, to identify archaeologically. Evidence for crafting is often found near ceremonial structures where Ceibal's early elite would have been present, suggesting that they were closely involved in the production process.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Overview Of the Materials Assemblagesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lithic and Faunal Evidence for Craft Production Among the Middle Preclassic Maya at Ceibal, Guatemala

Sharpe

Aoyama

2022

Ancient Mesoam

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“…By the Late Preclassic period (350–100 BC), inhabitants were mining local obsidian sources to make fine blades and other cutting implements. The presence of this same obsidian at lowland Preclassic communities hundreds of kilometers away indicates that an obsidian trade network had been established by this time (Aoyama 2017; Love 2011). Kaminaljuyu's early elites likely used this trade network to their advantage and cemented political control through alliances in the region.…”

Section: Environment and History Of Kaminaljuyumentioning

confidence: 97%

Dogs for the Gods, Fish for the Feast: The Ceremonial Role of Animals at Kaminaljuyu, Guatemala

et al. 2021

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This study examines the ritual and socioeconomic significance of animals in ceremonial contexts at Kaminaljuyu, Guatemala. Kaminaljuyu was once the largest and most politically powerful highland Maya center. We compare faunal remains from different contexts, including burials and dedicatory offerings in and around monumental features, to better understand the role of animals in these deposits. We then compare ceremonial activities across Mesoamerica to identify similarities alluding to widely recognized practices. Late and Terminal Preclassic (350 BC–AD 250) ceremonies at Kaminaljuyu contain some of the earliest marine fish recovered from a Maya highland site, demonstrating the ability of early elites to obtain exotic species for special events. Dogs, including perhaps the first evidence for Preclassic hairless dogs in Guatemala, appear in deposits that resemble canine sacrificial offerings in central Mexico. The new faunal data in this study provide a novel perspective on Kaminaljuyu's sociopolitical role in the region.

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“…According to the pXRF analysis, one blade was manufactured from San Martín Jilotepeque obsidian, while the remaining 10 blades were made of El Chayal obsidian from the Guatemalan highlands. San Martín Jilotepeque was the principal source of obsidian at Ceibal and many other lowland Maya sites during the late Middle Preclassic period (Aoyama 2017a(Aoyama , 2017bHaines and Glascock 2012), so the fact that the majority of obsidian artifacts in Cache 123 were produced from El Chayal material is unusual. In fact, all the other obsidian artifacts in the present study were manufactured from San Martín Jilotepeque obsidian.…”

Section: Cache 123mentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Maya Ritual Practices and Craft Production: Late Middle Preclassic Ritual Deposits Containing Obsidian Artifacts at Ceibal, Guatemala

Aoyama

Inomata

Triadan

et al. 2017

Journal of Field Archaeology

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This article examines Preclassic Maya ritual practices and craft production by means of a study of ritual deposits containing obsidian artifacts dated mostly to the late Middle Preclassic period (700-350 B.C.) at Ceibal, Guatemala. New ritual practices developed at Ceibal during this period, possibly through political interactions and negotiation involving emerging elites and other diverse community members. Common objects in ritual deposits in the public plaza shifted from greenstone celt caches to other artifacts, including those made of obsidian. The inhabitants of Ceibal engaged in various kinds of craft production, including the manufacture of obsidian prismatic blades. They also conducted public rituals in the Central Plaza, depositing exhausted polyhedral obsidian cores and other artifacts with symbolic significance in caches and as offerings in incipient elite burials and interments of sacrificed individuals. These cores clearly demonstrate the use of a sophisticated blade technology. Like greenstone objects, exhausted polyhedral obsidian cores deposited in cruciform arrangements along the east-west axis of the central E-Group plaza were used as symbols and markers of the center and four cardinal directions within the Maya cosmos. Public rituals were important for creating collective identities and for processes of political negotiation within the community. Emerging elites likely came to play an increasingly important role in public rituals as principal performers and organizers, setting the stage for later public events centered on rulers.

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Preclassic and Classic Maya Interregional and Long-Distance Exchange: A Diachronic Analysis of Obsidian Artifacts From Ceibal, Guatemala

Abstract: Mito, Ibaraki, Japan (kazuo.aoyama.1@vc.ibaraki.ac.jp) in the volcanic highlands. Each obsidian source is chemically distinct, and many sources can be distinguished based on instrumental attributions and optical criteria. For this reason obsidian has

Cited by 11 publications

References 30 publications

Lithic and Faunal Evidence for Craft Production Among the Middle Preclassic Maya at Ceibal, Guatemala

Lithic and Faunal Evidence for Craft Production Among the Middle Preclassic Maya at Ceibal, Guatemala

Dogs for the Gods, Fish for the Feast: The Ceremonial Role of Animals at Kaminaljuyu, Guatemala

Early Maya Ritual Practices and Craft Production: Late Middle Preclassic Ritual Deposits Containing Obsidian Artifacts at Ceibal, Guatemala

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