The Earliest Maya Farmers of Peten: New Evidence from Buenavista-Nuevo San José, Central Peten Lakes Region, Guatemala

Abstract

The origins and cultural affiliations of the first sedentary agricultural and pottery-producing communities in the southern Maya lowlands remain hotly debated. Here, we describe the discovery of a new early farming settlement at the small site of BuenavistaNuevo San José on Lake Peten Itza in northern Guatemala. Evidence for a pre-Mamom occupation (1000-700 BC) at this site was found in the deepest fill layers overlying bedrock, including pottery diagnostic of this time period and the remains of a postin-bedrock dwelling. Because the evidence for this early settlement is from secondary contexts and because four radiocarbon dates cover a broad chronological range, the best evidence for the pre-Mamom occupation consists of the ceramics recovered in the excavations. The closest links of the pre-Mamom pottery at Buenavista-Nuevo San José are with the Eb complex at Tikal and the Cunil complex of Cahal Pech, Belize, suggesting strong interactions between these early groups. The discovery of preMamom pottery at Buenavista also suggests that the early farmers were more widespread than previously suggested. Furthermore, the presence of Olmecoid symbols incised on the pre-Mamom pottery at Buenavista-Nuevo San José indicates that these early communities were immersed in broad pan-Mesoamerican spheres of interaction.

Early Pottery and Construction at Nixtun-Ch'ich’, Petén, Guatemala: Preliminary Observations

“…Two sherds of another Cunil type, Uck Red, represented small but thick-walled jars in an Early Chich deposit in Structure AA1 and later at Fosa Y (Figure 4b). A nearly identical jar was recovered at Buenavista-Nueva San José (Castellanos and Foias 2017:Figure 25a). One hallmark of Cunil pottery, post-slip fine-line incising, is rare at Nixtun-Ch'ich’.…”

“…Oddly, Mars Orange is not reported at Buenavista-Nuevo San José, which otherwise appears to have strong eastern connections (Castellanos and Foias 2017). Calam Buff, a widely recognized type in the central Petén lakes (including nearby Buenavista-Nuevo San José; Castellanos and Foias 2017:17) and farther east in the Cunil complex, is very rare at Nixtun-Ch'ich’. Two sherds of another Cunil type, Uck Red, represented small but thick-walled jars in an Early Chich deposit in Structure AA1 and later at Fosa Y (Figure 4b).…”

“…Early pottery at Trinidad de Nosotros on the northwest shore comprised only 40 sherds, provisionally identified as Pre-Mamom and Early Middle Preclassic, dated 800–650 BC (Moriarty 2012:201–205). At Buenavista-Nuevo San José, approximately 6 km to the north-northeast of Nixtun-Ch'ich’, the abundance of post-slip incising and slip characteristics in the Buenavista complex led the investigators to identify some types with the Cunil complex in western Belize and eastern Petén (Castellanos and Foias 2017). Four calibrated radiocarbon dates on carbon samples associated with the Buenavista complex have 2-σ ranges between 790 BC and 410 BC (Castellanos and Foias 2017:Table 1), placing them within Mamom times.…”

“…At Buenavista-Nuevo San José, approximately 6 km to the north-northeast of Nixtun-Ch'ich’, the abundance of post-slip incising and slip characteristics in the Buenavista complex led the investigators to identify some types with the Cunil complex in western Belize and eastern Petén (Castellanos and Foias 2017). Four calibrated radiocarbon dates on carbon samples associated with the Buenavista complex have 2-σ ranges between 790 BC and 410 BC (Castellanos and Foias 2017:Table 1), placing them within Mamom times. Buenavista-Nuevo San José’s seemingly close ties with eastern pottery producers may have contributed to the presence of Mars Orange ware at Nixtun-Ch'ich’.…”

“…Buenavista-Nuevo San José’s seemingly close ties with eastern pottery producers may have contributed to the presence of Mars Orange ware at Nixtun-Ch'ich’. Nevertheless, the Buenavista and Chich complexes suggest closer relations with Eb pottery at Tikal, and a Pre-Mamom Eb ceramic sphere has been posited (Castellanos and Foias 2017).…”