In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

At the time of the Spanish conquest Tayasal was the most prominent site in the Petén lowlands of northern Guatemala . Most scholars locate Tayasal on the shores of Late Petén Itzá, most likely obscured archaeological by the modern capital of Flores. Historical evidence suggests that Tayasal was founded on the edge of Lake Petén Itzá by transplants from Chichén Itzá in northern Yucatán. These Itzá Maya, under the control of the Canek lineage, maintained a vestigial overland trade network through the central and southern lowlands. In 1524–25 an expedition to Honduras, led by Hernán Cortés, passed through the Maya lowlands and the settlement at Tayasal was discovered. In 1618 Fr. Fuensalida and Fr. Orbita visited the site, and in 1697, Tayasal, the last capital of the independent Maya was captured and destroyed by the forces of Martin de Ursua. The approach of a new katun cycle that augured momentous changes may have hastened the destruction of Tayasal. 24.0. Sites near Lake Petén (T a yasal, Polol, Chakantún, T opoxté) 467 24.1. CARL E. GUTHE Report on Tayasal YB 20:364–368, 1921 Dr. Guthe sailed from New Orleans on February 11, 1921. During the latter part of the month a week was spent in excavating a small mound within the borders of British Honduras, at a clearing called New Boston, 4 miles [6.4 km] east of Baker, a village on the banks of the Belize River. After returning to Belize to meet Mr. Gates, Dr. Guthe left on March 7, met the rest of the expedition in El Cayo, British Honduras, and proceeded at once, with Mr. Ricketson, to Flores, Petén, arriving there on March 18. The first two weeks were spent in making a transit survey of the principal plazas of Tayasal. Actual excavation began April 5 and continued until May 21. Dr. Guthe left Flores on May 23, arriving in the United States on June 9. The excavations at New Boston were made possible through the kind offices of Dr. T. Gann, of Belize, and the officials of the Belize Estate and Produce Company , to whom the land upon which the mounds are situated belongs. The purposes of this excavation were two-fold: to obtain some data upon the construction of T H E C A R N E G I E M A Y A 468 SITES NEAR LAKE PETÉN (TAYASAL, POLOL,CHAKANTÚN, TOPOXTÉ) mounds in this area and to secure a collection almost entirely of potsherds from this district. A mound which consisted almost entirely of large and small stones, with very little earth, was trenched from one side to the center. Two walls of dressed stone, one running at right angles to the other, were uncovered . Neither extended to the surface. The foundation course in both cases was composed of large flat stones which projected beyond the face of the wall proper. A small but representative collection of sherds was secured . The mound also yielded a few fragmentary human bones, a serpentine bead, and some partly finished flint objects. Since flint outcrops are numerous in this district, it is safe to assume that flint-working played an important part in the economic life of the builders of these mounds. Upon reaching Flores, Dr. Guthe met with instant and hearty cooperation on the part of the government officials under Dr. José Prado Romaná, the governor of Petén, and of Dr. Robert Boburg, a resident Englishman . Unusual labor conditions and the strange class of work required caused some trouble at the beginning , which was, however, soon regulated. The early Spanish writers state that the Itzá left their home, Chichén Itzá in northern Yucatán, about the year 1450 and went south, founding a city they called Tayasal, upon a large island in the lake of Petén Itzá.Thepurposeofthepresentexpeditionwastoverify as far as possible the historical and geographical information contained in the early reports of this site (Means 1917), to secure an accurate idea of the plan and extent of the ruins, and to do what preliminary excavations seemed advisable. Recent archaeological investigators in this country have ascertained that this city is now upon a large peninsula which juts into the lake from the east. The present capital of Petén, the little village of Flores, is situated upon a small island within a quarter of a mile [0.4 km] of the shores of this peninsula. Through conversations with...

Share