Abstract
We discuss newly developed chronologies for two Classic Maya centers – Ek Xux and Muklebal Tzul – in the Maya Mountains of southern Belize. Previous research by the Maya Mountains Archaeological Project investigated these remote centers in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In 2022, the Bladen Paleoindian and Archaic Archaeological Project re-established archaeological research at Ek Xux and Muklebal Tzul with the goals of developing more detailed, multiproxy chronologies to understand the development and decline of each center, how they articulated with each other, and their relationships to nearby mortuary rockshelters. Here, we discuss the results of our 2022 test unit excavations, detailing the construction history of two elite residences as well as the civic ceremonial core of Ix Kuku’il in the foothills of the Maya Mountains. We provide a preliminary analysis of their chronologies based on architectural constructions and ceramic typologies. Finally, we highlight regional connections and interaction spheres of southern Belize drawing on our findings from the Ek Xux and Muklebal Tzul excavations and previously published ceramic typologies. This paper provides a foundation for future research in incorporating the Maya Mountain centers into multiproxy chronologies and the interaction spheres of southern Belize and beyond.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
