Abstract:In this report we introduce the site of Noh K'uh, a Late Preclassic (400 BC–AD 250) community in the western frontier of the Maya Lowlands. This new body of data contributes to the study of how complex societies emerged both within the Usumacinta River region and the Maya area overall.
“…Surface survey revealed an orientation pattern that ranges from 135° to 154° southeast, with an average of 145°. Juarez, Salgado-Flores and Hernandez (2019) previously described the orientation of the central plaza as 135° southeast. However, a follow-up investigation in 2017 found evidence of architectural disturbance that had obscured the shape and orientation of the architecture (Fig.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In total, these surveys revealed the presence of 176 house mounds and monumental structures (Juarez 2021) in an area covering 50 ha (Juarez et al 2019). The majority of excavated materials date to the Late Preclassic between 395 and 1 bc (Juarez et al 2019, 213). Figure 2.Map of Noh K'uh's location with reference to other Preclassic sites.…”
This article examines how landscape modification was key to the development of an urbanizing society within a valley in Chiapas, Mexico. The Late Preclassic (400 bc–ad 250) site of Noh K'uh demonstrates how both the altered and unaltered environment signified the importance of cosmological concepts within this society. In an area rich with mountains and caves, the natural landscape offered residents opportunities to create symbolically meaningful living spaces. Evidence from local settlements reveals how the cosmological universe played a guiding role during the site's peak growth period, suggesting that other common contributors (such as economic and militaristic needs) of expansion may have been secondary.
“…Surface survey revealed an orientation pattern that ranges from 135° to 154° southeast, with an average of 145°. Juarez, Salgado-Flores and Hernandez (2019) previously described the orientation of the central plaza as 135° southeast. However, a follow-up investigation in 2017 found evidence of architectural disturbance that had obscured the shape and orientation of the architecture (Fig.…”
Section: Resultsmentioning
confidence: 99%
“…In total, these surveys revealed the presence of 176 house mounds and monumental structures (Juarez 2021) in an area covering 50 ha (Juarez et al 2019). The majority of excavated materials date to the Late Preclassic between 395 and 1 bc (Juarez et al 2019, 213). Figure 2.Map of Noh K'uh's location with reference to other Preclassic sites.…”
This article examines how landscape modification was key to the development of an urbanizing society within a valley in Chiapas, Mexico. The Late Preclassic (400 bc–ad 250) site of Noh K'uh demonstrates how both the altered and unaltered environment signified the importance of cosmological concepts within this society. In an area rich with mountains and caves, the natural landscape offered residents opportunities to create symbolically meaningful living spaces. Evidence from local settlements reveals how the cosmological universe played a guiding role during the site's peak growth period, suggesting that other common contributors (such as economic and militaristic needs) of expansion may have been secondary.
“…MAP investigators continue to find that sites throughout the basin-including Chak Aktun (Palka 2014), Tzunun (Hernandez and Palka 2017), and Tz'ib'ana (Deeb 2011;Hernandez 2019)-have similar Preclassic origins. Except for Noh K'uh, all the sites investigated by MAP were reoccupied and repurposed during the Postclassic (A.D. 1000-1500).…”
The Late Preclassic (400 b.c.–a.d. 200) site of Noh K'uh in Chiapas, Mexico, is home to extended residential groups that aggregated around a small ceremonial complex at the bottom of the Mensäbäk Basin. Evidence collected from domestic contexts indicates that the Late Preclassic households of this site were organized under corporate political systems that emphasized collective identity and cosmological renewal. This article reveals how the people of Noh K'uh integrated cosmological beliefs and practices within the construction of their dwelling spaces, particularly through using cache deposits and participating in other architectural renewal ceremonies. Residents of Noh K'uh may have engaged in these practices to create “semipublic” gathering spaces for administrative and ceremonial activities at the level of the household.
“…While LiDAR data are available in some areas, typically they are still unavailable to archaeologists due to high costs and lack of flights, particularly in remote regions. Thus, our options for free or low-cost raster terrain data are limited to lower-resolution datasets such as Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) or Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Refraction Radiometer (ASTER), which unfortunately are not sufficient for visibility analyses within urban landscapes such as ancient Maya cities where topography is integral to site layout (Aveni and Hartung 1986;Gagnon et al 2011;Inomata 2008;Juarez, Salgado-Flores & Hernández 2019;Landau 2015;Richards-Rissetto and Landau 2014). Another option is analog data acquired via instrument mapping and published as paper maps with contour lines.…”
Section: Step 3: Integrating Multi-source Geospatial Data (Eg Shapementioning
Digitally-mediated practices of archaeological data require reflexive thinking about where archaeology stands as a discipline in regard to the 'digital,' and where we want to go. To move toward this goal, we advocate a historical approach that emphasizes contextual source-side criticism and data intimacy-scrutinizing maps and 3D data as we do artifacts by analyzing position, form, material and context of analog and digital sources. Applying this approach, we reflect on what we have learned from processes of digitally-mediated data. We ask: What can we learn as we convert analog data to digital data? And, how does digital data transformation impact the chain of archaeological practice? Primary, or raw data, are produced using various technologies ranging from Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)/Global Positioning System (GPS), LiDAR, digital photography, and ground penetrating radar, to digitization, typically using a flat-bed scanner to transform analog data such as old field notes, photographs, or drawings into digital data. However, archaeologists not only collect primary data, we also make substantial time investments to create derived data such as maps, 3D models, or statistics via post-processing and analysis. While analog data is typically static, digital data is more dynamic, creating fundamental differences in digitally-mediated archaeological practice. To address some issues embedded in this process, we describe the lessons we have learned from translating analog to digital geospatial data-discussing what is lost and what is gained in translation, and then applying what we have learned to provide concrete insights to archaeological practice.
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