essay

The rise of Maya civilization: a summary view

origins of maya civilization • Albuquerque • Published In 1977 • Pages: 383-423

By: Willey, Gordon Randolph.

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document

This is the summary chapter for the book, 'The Origins of Maya Civilization.' Other chapters are included in documents 28-39. The Early Preclassic Xe pottery complex at the sites of Altar de Sacrificios and Seibal represent the earliest and most abundant evidence of Maya lowland occupation. There are two possible origins of the Xe ceramic tradition: i) the Gulf Coast, suggesting a migratory route up the Usumacinta River, or ii) southern highlands of Guatemala. The possibility that settlers could have come from both directions is not excluded. The Mamom complex developed out of the Xe, beginning around 700 B.C., and represents a trend towards uniformity and standardization. The Late Preclassic is marked by the Chicanel ceramic complex which developed from the Mamom. Also in the Late Preclassic Period one finds the first appearance of ceremonial-center architecture, trade in luxury items, and differentiation in grave goods.

SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF

Chronologies and culture sequences

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

5: Excellent Primary Data

AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection

Ian Skoggard ; 2000

Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document

not specified

Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to

4000-1750 BP

Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)

Maya Lowlands, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and Belize

NotesAdditional notes

Gordon R. Willey

For bibliographical references see document number 1:Anonymous

LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number

76057537

LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings

Mayas--Antiquities