essay

Preclassic Maya civilization

new theories on the ancient maya3Published In 1992 • Pages: 137-144

By: Hammond, Norman.

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
Hammond notes that the lowland Maya area of Mesoamerica has been occupied by people for perhaps 10,000 years before the emergence of Classic Maya civilization and there is a strong possibility that these early inhabitants were the direct ancestors of the Classic and present Maya population (p. 4). This study examines some of the major Early Lowland/Preclassic sites of the region (e.g., Cuello, Komchen, Cerros, El Mirador, and Nohmul) and analyzes the archaeological data so obtained in terms of the characteristic features representative of this period such as house types, public structures, canal construction, land use, maize agriculture, use of color in pottery, ceremonial masks, etc.
SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Identification
Tillage
Land use
Water supply
Public structures
Religious and educational structures
Visual arts
traditionCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
Preclassic Maya
HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
2001
RegionThe area the document pertains to
Middle America and the Caribbean
Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
Maya Area
Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
essay
Evaluation
Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
Archaeologist
Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
4: Excellent Secondary Data
AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
John Beierle ; 2000
Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
no date
Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
4000 BP - 2100 BP
Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Guatemala, Yucatan, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Meso and South America
NotesAdditional notes
Norman Hammond
Papers presented at the annual Maya Weekend sponsored by the University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology of the University of Pennsylvania, in 1987
Includes bibliographical references (p. 144)
LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
92008116
LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
Mayas--Antiquities