The settlement system in a late  Preclassic Maya community

Scarborough, Vernon L.

book chapter

The settlement system in a late Preclassic Maya community

archaeology at cerros, belize, central america, , series • 3 • Published In 1991 • Pages: x, 243 p

By: Scarborough, Vernon L..

Abstract
This work examines the settlement system at the Cerros site, a Late Preclassic Lowland Maya center located on the leeward shore of Lowry's Bight in northern Belize. The study of this site is particularly important because of the fact that 'the near absence of later construction at Cerros makes it unique in the archaeology of the Southern Maya Lowlands and has allowed the study of Late Preclassic settlement patterns undistubred by later site modification or mixing of deposits' (p. 1). In addition to the author's major discussion of settlement patterns, there is also much data to be found in this document on the physical environment, Preclassic ball courts, and the canals at Cerros. Cultural comparisons are also made to other Preclassic populations in the lowland Mayan area (e.g., Guatemala, Mexico). Four appendices conclude this work providing information on Scarborough's volumetric studies at Cerros, in which the amount of earth and rubble used in the constructon of various structures are estimated; a soil sample analysis; and a listing of various molluscan fauna and flora found at the site.

Organization and analysis of results of research

Archaeological survey methods

Topography and geology