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Two Seasons of Archaeological Survey on the Gallon Jug-Laguna Seca Property in Northwestern Belize

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Two Seasons of Archaeological Survey on the Gallon Jug-Laguna Seca Property in Northwestern Belize BEAST Mode: Two Seasons of Archaeological Survey on the Gallon Jug-Laguna Seca Property in Northwestern Belize by David Sandrock, BA A Thesis In Anthropology Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS Approved Brett A. Houk, PhD Chair of Committee Tamra Walter, PhD Marisol Cortes-Rincon, PhD Mark Sheridan Dean of the Graduate School August, 2017 Copyright 2017, David Sandrock Texas Tech University, David Sandrock, August 2017 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would be completely remiss if I didn’t extend my first thanks to my mother and father, Denise and David Sandrock. Without those two, there is literally no me; without their love, support, and figurative smacks upside the head, I wouldn’t be anywhere near where I am today. Very special thanks goes to my partner, my Ix Naab Bahlam, and my love Lily, for putting up with my sentence in Lubbock and my various archaeological adventures. Te amo, mi liria bella. A huge deal of gratitude goes to my advisor, Dr. Brett A. Houk, for all of his help in every phase of this project, even before I was his student at Texas Tech. His helpful, insightful, and slightly smart-aleck nature meshed extremely well with my own. In general, he made my time in Lubbock far more productive (and the locale far more palatable) than they would have been otherwise. Thanks to him, I’ll never forget to put a co-author’s name on a title slide again. No matter where I go in archaeology, my family from the Dos Hombres to Gran Cacao Archaeology Project (née Settlement Survey Project) and Programme for Belize will always hold a special place in my heart. Dr. Marisol Cortes-Rincon, mi madre Colombiana, has been just that since I arrived at Humboldt State more than seven years ago. My little big sister Sarah Boudreaux has been there for me since my first day in Belize, ready to give advice, support, and scoldings when necessary. Many thanks go to Dr. Jaime Awe, Dr. John Morris, the Belize Institute of Archaeology, and all of Belize’s National Institution of Culture and History for the well-wishes and official permits that enabled BEAST to undertake this task. BEAST also owes a great deal of gratitude to Leroy Lee and American Seismic. The work carried out by American Seismic granted us with a somewhat unique opportunity for rapid survey coverage, and the financial assistance provided by Mr. Lee ensured that this project could be undertaken successfully. Without Leroy, there is no BEAST, and I cannot thank him enough for this opportunity. ii Texas Tech University, David Sandrock, August 2017 Dr. Fred Valdez, Jr. has given countless archaeologists their first (and second, and third) chances during his time overseeing The University of Texas’ La Milpa Field Station on Programme for Belize property, myself included. “Papa” Fred is one of the most generous individuals I have ever had the privilege of working with, and even his most stern looks of disapproval were made with the best of intentions. BEAST was immeasurably assisted by Jerry Serminia and Josimar Magaña, my friends and guides. Jerry worked with BEAST for the duration of the 2013 field season and one glorious day in 2014. Without Jerry, BEAST and the students brave enough to join in on survey would have been at the mercy of a Californian and his GPS to navigate them safely through the bush. Luckily, I realized quickly that Jerry knows best when it comes to the jungles of Belize (and a little bit of Guatemala). During the 2014 field season, Josimar Magaña managed to keep us out of harm’s way (for the most part). Like Jerry before him, Josi was a significant help and awesome friend in the field, even when we were both going a bit off the rails. Additionally, I will be forever grateful of the rest of the Chan Chich Lodge staff. Everyone at Chan Chich made us feel welcome every day we resided in our beautiful accommodations. These amazing folks assisted us in every way, including providing sharp chainsaws, a trio of world-class meals every day, a place to watch the FIFA Confederations Cup and World Cup, and cold Belikin after hard days of survey work. Leticia Martinez acted as a second mother to us all, and I’ve never seen a frown on her face. For better or worse, we saw Migde Perdomo almost every day, including the day he notched two beautiful goals for Chan Chich FC. I’ve never enjoyed being heckled by a waiter (or heckling one back) more than at my time at Chan Chich. The cooks, Maritsa Montuy and Rosario Vasquez, kept us full to the brim with amazing food, and aided greatly in our heckling of Migde. Emil Flota, the world’s best bartender, kept our spirits high every evening and afternoon. Marc and Carly DiBrita made sure all of our needs were taken care of, including a place for me to scream for my Gunners’ 2014 FA Cup victory and a massively long cable to watch World Cup matches from the comfort of the Looters’ iii Texas Tech University, David Sandrock, August 2017 Trench. Alan Jeal, Hector Gomez, and the employees of Gallon Jug Agribusiness were tremendously helpful, providing us with tender care for La Dinosauria and GPS information on potential sites. Many thanks also go to Jeff Roberson of Yalbac Ranch, who granted our vehicle permits and provided us with a high-quality GEOPDF map of the property, showing the logging roads used extensively by BEAST. Working with Mark Willis on BEAST’s UAV survey and recording was a great experience, and his in-field help with all things GIS was much appreciated. I also am grateful for all of the students that were brave enough to come along on survey with BEAST. These students were great sports in the field, never faltering when we dragged them perilously through dense and painfully abrasive vegetation and up steep, muddy hillsides. iv Texas Tech University, David Sandrock, August 2017 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................... vii LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................. viii LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................. ix I. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 II. PROJECT SETTING ...................................................................................... 6 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 6 Physical Environment ....................................................................................... 6 The Three Rivers Region ............................................................................ 6 Climate ........................................................................................................ 9 Physiography ............................................................................................. 10 Vegetation ................................................................................................. 12 Ecozones ................................................................................................... 14 Summary ................................................................................................... 17 Cultural History ............................................................................................... 18 The Maya of the Three Rivers Region ...................................................... 18 Historical Background: Belize, From Colony to Country ........................ 22 III. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY ...................................... 28 Theoretical Background .................................................................................. 28 Previous Investigations near Gallon Jug and Laguna Seca ....................... 34 Previous Investigations on the Gallon Jug-Laguna Seca Property ........... 36 Programme for Belize Archaeological Project ......................................... 36 Chan Chich Archaeological Project and Belize Estates Archaeological Survey Team ............................................................................................. 36 Punta de Cacao Archaeology Project ........................................................ 37 Other Settlement Surveys in Northwestern Belize.................................... 37 Methodology ................................................................................................... 39 Transect Survey Methodology .................................................................. 39 Site Revisits ............................................................................................... 45 UAV Survey, Targeted Reconnaissance, and Informant-Based Survey .. 45 IV. SURVEY RESULTS AND FINDINGS ...................................................... 47 v Texas Tech University, David Sandrock, August 2017 Transect Surveys ............................................................................................. 47 American Seismic Line 1 .......................................................................... 54 American Seismic Line 3 .......................................................................... 57 American Seismic Line 6 .......................................................................... 58 American Seismic Line 7 .........................................................................
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