Before the State
What three animals did the early villagers of Cuello eat the most?
Freshwater turtle
Deer
Dog
What do emblem glyphs tell us about the relationship between Maya polities?
Regional hierarchies between sites (relationships and alliances); we can see where these where these glyphs are distributed
What writing systems preceded the system created by the Maya?
Zapotec and Isthmian
What chiefdom had to collapse before El Mirador rose to power?
Nakbe
What does the skeleton of K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo' tell us about him?
He was a foreigner (from Tikal), middle-aged, elite, and a warrior (healed parry fracture)
What is the difference between minimal and maximal chiefdoms?
Minimal: 2-levels, less monumental
Maximal: 3-level, monumental sites
What are the two examples of Maya first generation states?
Calakmul and Tikal
What is the function of a cache?
To animate, consecrate, and/or dedicate a building
How did the relationship between Copan and Quirigua change over time?
First, Copan installed ruler at Quirigua (AD 426)
Later, Quirigua killed Copan king and gains independence (AD 738)
For awhile, archaeologists thought the elite burials at Kaminaljuyu were foreigners from Teotihuacan. How was this proven to be wrong?
Dental analyses showed they had grown up in the local area
What does the huge investment at El Mirador tell us about maximal chiefdoms?
New strategies for organizing labor; competition
Explosion of monumental architecture (El Tigre) required lots of labor and people being pulled in (from Nakbe?)
Who commissioned Altar Q at Copan and why?
The 16th ruler (Yax Pasaj Chan Yopaat) to show him as legitimate successor to the founder's dynasty
What are three objects used in Maya rituals?
Eccentric flints
Obsidian blades
Stingray spines
Copal incense
Beakers/vessels
Who did the Copan dynastic founder marry and why?
The highest ranking local women as a strategy to consolidate his power
Why did the Copan founder commission a flurry of monuments and texts?
He was a foreign usurper so this was one way to legitimize himself
What distinguishes the Formative from the Archaic period?
Formative Maya had pottery and lived in villages
What are the two examples of Maya second generation states?
Dos Pilas and Copán
What do the titles "ah kin mai", "ah kin", "chilan", etc., tell us about Maya priesthood?
It was organized into a religious hierarchy
When did Tikal get the upper hand over Calakmul?
AD 695
Tikal became more important when El Mirador declined with Calakmul
Tikal dynasty ended around AD 870
An individual originally from Tikal was the first ruler of this second-generation state.
Dos Pilas (younger brother of Tikal ruler; moved to Dos Pilas because he would not have become ruler of Tikal)
How can archaeologists tell that Maya chiefdoms were very competitive?
Masks ripped off platforms
Evidence of temple burning
Defensible site locations
Palisades and ditches
How did the relationship between Tikal and Calakmul differ from that of Monte Alban and Teotihuacan?
Calakmul and Tikal were constantly at war and struggling to gain the upper hand
What are the signs of Central Mexican/Teotihuacan influence in the Maya area?
Ceramics (thin orange, tripod cylindrical vessels)
Architecture (talud-tablero)
Art showing visitors, ambassadors, and emulation
What was the Yucatan Peninsula like in AD 1500?
Divided into 16 cuchcabalob
The Spanish arrived
Where was the mother of Copan's 16th ruler from?
Palenque