Period of wattle-and-daub constructions was recovered from a structuresealed below a Middle Pre-

Classic plaster floor in the eastern group at Nakbe(Operation 51 K). This low platform had a hard clay
floor flanked by large,coarse stones (Fig. 5) with imprints of parallel, narrow, wooden poles in themezcla
(lime and clay mortar). Similar buildings were found in Lopez Mamomcontexts at Cuello with fragments
of wall cladding, parallel impressions of pole.

The Preclassic, also known in greater Mesoamerica as the Formative, has been divided into three logical
time periods, the Early, Middle and Late. The earliest Maya came into the Belize and adjacent tropical
lowland areas as farmers before 2000 BC, but did not appear in the archaeological record for nearly a
millennium. The Early Preclassic Period marks the beginnings of agriculture. The earliest evidence for
burning and the cultivation of maize dates to well before 2000 BC in the Peten of Guatemala. The lake
core sediments record the beginnings of human manipulation of the environment. These sediments
show systematic, probably annual, burnings, and the increase in grasses shows indications of human
intrusions. However,
corresponding archaeological sites
are hard to pin down. Ceramics
and household architecture are
associated with this phase, now defined
as roughly 2000 - 1000 BC. Much of
what we know about life during
this period comes from beyond the
bounds of the Maya area, but some of
the earliest evidence in the
Maya area is found at the site of Cuello,
in northern Belize.

-Classic period.Recent
explorations have located a series of
elevated platforms about 1 mhigh
along the southern edge of Nakbe,
with a single, elevated structure
on oneside of the platform. Although
we have yet to excavate these
structures (whichare believed
to date to the Middle Pre-Classic),
they may be a diagnostic formof
Pre-Classic residential
architecture as identified at
Komchen (Ringle andAndrews 1988; Andrews and Ringle 1992; Ringle n.d.a, n.d.b).One of the enduring
characteristics of Mesoamerican architecture is theassociation of stone monuments with specific
buildings, a trait that extends tothe Early and Middle Pre-Classic periods among the Olmec. During the
latterpart of the Middle Pre-Classic period (late Ox phase) at Nakbe,
As Maya cities spread throughout the varied geography of Mesoamerica, the extent of site planning
appears to have been minimal, their cities having been built somewhat haphazardly as dictated by the
topography of each independent location. Maya architecture tends to integrate a great degree of
natural features. For instance, some cities existing on the flat limestone plains of the northern Yucatán
grew into great sprawling municipalities, while others built in the hills of Usumacinta utilized the natural
loft of the topography to raise their towers and temples to impressive heights. However, some
semblance of order, as required by any large city, still prevailed. At the onset of large-scale construction,
a predetermined axis was typically established in congruence with the cardinal directions. Depending
upon the location and availability of natural resources such as fresh-water wells, or cenotes, the city
grew by connecting great plazas with the numerous platforms that created the sub-structure for nearly
all Maya buildings, by means of sacbeob causeways. As more structures were added and existing
structures re-built or remodeled, the great Maya cities seemed to take on an almost random identity
that contrasts sharply with other great Mesoamerican cities such as Teotihuacan and its rigid grid-like
construction.

Cities of the ancient Maya

Maya cities were the administrative and ritual centres for regions which included the city itself and an
agricultural hinterland.

The largest Maya cities were home to many people. At the major centre of Tikal, for example, within a
six-square-mile area, there were over 10,000 individual structures ranging from temple-pyramids to
thatched-roof huts. Tikal's population is estimated at up to 60,000, giving it a population density several
times greater than an average city in Europe or America at the same period in history.

A Maya city from the Classic Period usually consisted of a series of stepped platforms topped by
masonry structures, ranging from great temple-pyramids and palaces to individual house mounds. These
structures were in turn arranged around broad plazas or courtyards. Maya architecture is characterized
by a sophisticated sense of decoration and art, expressed in bas-relief carvings and wall paintings. At
major sites like Tikal, large buildings and complexes might also have been interconnected by stone roads
or causeways.

The most impressive Maya site is likely Tikal in Guatemala. These photographs show the buildings
around the Great Plaza: the Temple of the Giant Jaguar (right-hand side; ca. A.D. 700), the Temple of the
Masks (ca. A.D. 699), and the North Acropolis. At the heart of the Temple of the Giant Jaguar is the tomb
of a high priest, buried with hundreds of offerings - vases, jade and so on. The sanctuary for worship at
the top of the structure sits on a nine-tiered pyramid.
Maya cities were rarely laid out in neat grids, and appear to have developed in an unplanned fashion,
with temples and palaces torn down and rebuilt over and over through the centuries. Because of this
seemingly erratic pattern of settlement, the boundaries of Maya cities are often hard to determine.
Some cities were surrounded by a moat, and some had defensive earthworks around them; however,
this was unusual. City walls are rare at Maya sites, with the exception of some recently discovered cities
dating from the collapse of Maya civilization, when protective walls were suddenly thrown up around
cities under siege from outside enemies.

(left) The "Castillo" (actually a temple) and part of the walled city of Tulúm (Northern Yucatán, Post
Classic period).

(right) The Pyramid of the Magician in Uxmal (Northern Yucatán) has an unusual shape, being built on a
great oval platform, but otherwise conforms
to the traditional temple-pyramid form.
According to Maya legend, the temple was
created in the span of a single night by a
child prodigy who became ruler of the land.
In reality it may have taken as long as 300
years to build what we see today, for it
actually comprises five structures
superimposed one on top of the other.

Temple-pyramids were the most striking

feature of a Classic Maya city. They were built from hand-cut limestone blocks and towered over all
surrounding structures. Although the temples themselves usually contained one or more rooms, the
rooms were so narrow that they could only have been used on ceremonial occasions not meant for
public consumption. The alignments of ceremonial structures could be significant.

Although the temples were the most imposing structures within a Maya city, the bulk of construction at
a Maya site was composed of palaces: single-storey structures built like temple-pyramids but on much
lower platforms and with as many as several dozen plastered rooms. Unlike temple-pyramids, palaces
often contained one or two interior courtyards.

(left) The "Nunnery" in Uxmal, actually a palace complex, stands adjacent to the Pyramid of the
Magician.
(right) The "Palace" dominates the central area of Palenque; sitting on a large artificial mound, this
complex of galleries and courtyards is about the size of a standard North American city block.

There is no real agreement on what the palaces were actually used for. Rulers and other elite might
have lived in them, although the rooms are cramped and spartan. Archaeologists suggest that nobles
were more likely to have lived in less permanent buildings which haven't survived. Archaeologists also
suggest that the cell-like rooms of the palaces could indicate that monks, nuns or priests lived there,
although there is little evidence of ecclesiastical or monastic orders among the ancient Maya.

In some regions, groundwater was

scarce, and large cities like Tikal would
have had large man-made reservoirs to
service their populations during the dry
season. Many Maya sites had ball
courts; others had sweat baths, possibly
adopted from Mexico. Important cities
also had multiple stelae or pillars placed
in the stucco floors of plazas, usually
facing important temples and palaces.
The stelae were sometimes on
platforms, supporting temple-pyramids,
and usually had a low, round flat-topped altar in front of them.

Typical Maya architectural features included the corbel vault and the roof comb. The corbel vault has no
keystone, as European arches do, making the Maya vault appear more like a narrow triangle than an
archway. It has been suggested that this unusual form exists because the Maya never mastered
keystone technology. Others suggest that the lack of keystone was deliberate: the Maya vault always
had nine stone layers, representing the nine layers of the Underworld. A keystone would have created a
tenth layer, outside the Maya cosmology.

The Great Gate at Labna, southern Yucatán, is a fine example of Puuc-style architecture. Architects
perhaps sacrificed the functionality of a "true arch" (with keystone) for the symbolism of the Maya vault.
The tall structure was once free-standing, probably a ceremonial passageway between two plazas.
The Temple of the Sun, Palenque, was built by Chan-Bahlum ("snake-jaguar"), son of Pacal, ca. A.D. 690.
Its roof comb had no structural function, but can be considered analogous to a headdress worn by a
king. The Temple's mansard roof is decorated with the beautiful stucco figures for which Palenque is
justly famous.

The Maya roof comb was a lattice of stone added despite the height of the temple-pyramids. Perhaps
Maya architects didn't feel the temples were grand enough, and so added an upper extension. The roof
comb was always highly decorated with painted stucco reliefs, as was the temple facade. Equally
decorated were the doorways, doorjambs and facades of many other Maya structures, which were
ornamented with heavy carving in stone or wood.

The Preclassic period in Maya history stretches from the beginning of permanent village life c. 1000 BC
until the advent of the Classic Period c. 250 AD, and is subdivided into Early (prior to 1000 BC), Middle
(1000–400 BC), and Late (400 BC – 250 AD). Major archaeological sites of this period include Nakbe,
Uaxactun, Seibal, San Bartolo, Cival, and El Mirador.[1]

Maya society underwent a series of profound transformations between c. 100 AD and 250 AD, which
resulted in the cessation of monumental building at many Preclassic cities and the inferred collapse of
their political and economic systems, often characterized as the "Preclassic Collapse.

Middle Preclassic (1000 BC–400 BC) Edit

Southern Maya area sites

By around the year 1000 BC, the Mayan city of Aguada Fénix was built in Tabasco.Canals and irrigation
schemes demanding coordinated human effort began to appear with increasing complexity and scale.
Gradually, villages began to include central plazas and earthen mounds, occasionally enhanced by
masonry. For instance, the site of La Blanca featured a central mound more than seventy-five feet tall
and contained a masonry fragment strongly resembling a head in the distinctive Olmec style.

Late Preclassic (400 BC–100 AD) Edit

The Late Preclassic saw the rise of two powerful states that rival later Classic Maya city-states for scale
and monumental architecture, Kaminaljuyu in the highlands and El Mirador in the lowlands.

Terminal Preclassic (100 AD–250 AD) Edit

The late or terminal Preclassic murals found in San Bartolo provide important information regarding
mythology and royal inauguration ritual around 100 BC.

Preclassic Collapse Edit

The story of the mysterious lost civilization that suddenly collapsed for an unknown reason has captured
the popular imagination for well over a century.