Monumental Foundations: An Investigation of the Preclassic Development of Civic- Ceremonial Plazas in the Cival Region, Guatemala by Kaitlin R. Ahern May 2020 A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the Graduate School of the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Anthropology This page is intentionally left blank. ii Copyright by Kaitlin R. Ahern 2020 II ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: There is a long list of individuals and organizations that have both contributed to my formation as both an archaeologist and as a scholar. I am immensely grateful to my advisor, Dr. Timothy Chevral and committee members Dr. Douglas Perrelli and Dr. Sarunas Milisauskas, for their guidance and assistance in the completion of my doctorate. I am thankful to Warren Barbour for warmly accepting me into the Master’s program at the University at Buffalo and welcoming me into UB’s Teotihuacan Archaeology Laboratory. I will always treasure my memories with him discussing the formation of cities and states, especially urban planning and Teotihuacan. He will be greatly missed. Timothy Chevral graciously became my new chair once Warren Barbour retired. Throughout my graduate school education, he taught a wide array of courses that served to enrich my anthropological and archaeological understanding. His courses also greatly enhanced my knowledge regarding archaeological theory and introduced me to the archaeological sciences. Douglas Perrelli provided me with a North American perspective to my research and spent time helping me prepare for my advanced exams. Sarunas Milisauskas taught me about the history of archaeology and how it has impacted archaeological approaches in other countries. This dissertation was made possible through the generous funding opportunities offered by the University at Buffalo and its Anthropology Department. My fieldwork and data analysis were supported by multiple Mark Diamond Research Foundation (MDRF) awards and the Morris and Lucille Opler Dissertation Research scholarship. I am also appreciative of Medaille College for providing me with conference funding in 2018, 2019, and 2020 through the Medaille College Faculty Travel Award. III I want to express my utmost gratitude to Francisco Estrada-Belli for inviting me to excavate with the Holmul Archaeological Project in 2013 and for allowing me to conduct my dissertation research on plazas in the Cival region. My research was heavily shaped by my first excavation with the project, which focused on the western radial pyramid in Cival’s Central E- Group assemblage. I am grateful to Ana Lucía Arroyave for both helping me obtain the permit to get the lime plaster samples out of Guatemala and for eventually shipping them to Buffalo, NY. Additionally, I want to thank the Guatemalan Institute of Anthropology and History (Instituto de Antropología e Historia de Guatemala) for providing me with this permit. I am immensely grateful to all of the Guatemalan workers who assisted me in my excavations. In particular, I want to thank Don Israeli for his insightful knowledge regarding archaeology and forestry. I also offer my appreciation to Selvin and his drivers, especially Yobany, for safely transporting me to and from the archaeological sites in the jungle. During the summer of 2014, Mary Neivens graciously allowed me to spend nearly a month in her house in Antigua, which also served as the temporary location of the Holmul Archaeological Project’s laboratory. I grew immensely as a researcher during this brief stay through engaging in valuable conversation with Mary Neivens, Mike Callaghan, Bridgette Kovacevich, Nina Neivens, Diana Mendez, Tom Garrison, and Astrid Runggaldier. I cannot thank them enough for sharing their knowledge and expertise with me! I am also indebted to those individuals and organizations that facilitated my formative interactions and engagements in archaeology and the ancient Maya. I begin by thanking Curtiss Hoffman for serving as my undergraduate advisor and facilitating my first field school at the Middleboro Little League site in Massachusetts. In addition, I express my sincere appreciation to Sandra Faiman-Silva and Louise Badiane for organizing the 2009 study abroad winter trip to IV Belize at my undergraduate institution of Bridgewater State University. I am also grateful for my opportunity to attend a month-long field school in Belize with the University of Rhode Island, where we spent time working with both BVAR at Baking Pot and with AFAR at Cahal Pech. The data analysis of my plaster samples was only possible with the help of Peter Bush, who graciously provided me with access to the South Campus Instrument Center and allowed me to utilize SEM-EDS, optical and polarizing microscopes. I am also grateful for the assistance of Aaron Shugar, located at Buffalo State College, who allowed me to examine my lime plaster samples with portable XRF. Additionally, I am appreciative to the National Petrography Laboratory for producing quality thin sections from my collected lime plaster samples. During my summers in the field, I met and became friends with a lot of amazing people in Guatemala and Belize. In particular, I want to express my gratitude to Angel Castillo and Maria Mercedes Colindres Díaz for both their friendship and for teaching me how to improve my excavation drawings. I am also thankful for the support and friendship of Diana Mendez, Antolin Velásquez Lopez, Sheryl Carcuz Chinchilla, Josue Calvo, Alex Posadas, and Manuel Antonio Portillo, aka Tony. I am immensely grateful for the support of my friends and family in the United States – you know who you are. There are so many individuals that have had a profound impact on me throughout this journey and contributed to the qualities that allowed me to pursue and complete this doctorate. For this, I thank you. I sincerely thank all the faculty and staff in my anthropology department for providing me with an enriching education. I want to sincerely thank Joshua Kwoka for providing support and assistance in helping me complete my degree and dissertation. Additionally, I am grateful for the support of my fellow graduate students who accompanied me throughout this journey. In particular, I am grateful to Erika Ruhl and Susan Cozzi for providing V me with encouragement, support, and someone to vent to while we each worked to complete our dissertations. Finally, I am forever appreciative of the support of my family and husband. I want to express my gratitude to my mom, dad, and Jessie, for always believing in me, even when I did not believe in myself. I am also grateful for Jessie’s feedback on this dissertation. I love you all so much! I am also thankful for my cats Deckard and Cain, who were always there to remind me to take a much-needed break. This dissertation would have been significantly harder without the encouragement, love, and support of Parker Simpson. I am immensely grateful for his uttermost support throughout my entire academic journey. VI TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION PAGE Acknowledgments III Table of Contents VII List of Figures XI List of Tables XIII Abstract XIV Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Introduction.……………………………………………………………………….. 1 1.2 Contribution.………………………………………………………………………. 3 1.3 Outline of Chapters.……………………………………………………………….. 5 Chapter 2: Theoretical Approaches to Understanding Plazas 2.1 Introduction.……………………………………………………………………….. 9 2.2 Agency, Practice, Structuration, and Historical-processualism.…………………... 10 2.2.1 Structuration and Historical-processualism.…………………………………. 11 2.3 Place, Place-Making, and Sacred Place.…………………………………………… 13 2.4 Social Memory.……………………………………………………………………. 16 2.4.1 Practice, Place, and Social Memory.………………………………………… 19 2.5 Ancient Maya Caches, Place, and Social Memory.……………………………….. 20 2.6 Community of Practice.……………………………………………………………. 24 2.7 Theorizing Plazas.…………………………………………………………………. 27 2.8 Summary.………………………………………………………………………….. 29 Chapter 3: Environmental and Background of Cival, Holmul, and Witzna 3.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 31 3.2 Environment……………………………………………………………………….. 33 3.3 Early Understandings of the Maya lowlands and Origins of the Maya…………… 35 3.3.1 Discovery of the Preclassic Period………………………………………….. 38 3.3.2 Contemporary Theories……………………………………………………... 39 3.3.3 Brief History of the Preclassic………………………………………………. 40 3.3.3a Archaic and Early Preclassic period…………………………………….. 41 3.3.3b Middle Preclassic period………………………………………………... 43 3.3.3c Late Preclassic period…………………………………………………… 45 3.3.3d Conclusion………………………………………………………………. 46 VII 3.4 Plaza Ritual………………………………………………………………………... 47 3.4.1 Caches and E-Group Plazas…………………………………………………. 49 3.5 Cival Region………………………………………………………………………. 51 3.5.1 Cival…………………………………………………………………………. 55 3.5.2 Holmul………………………………………………………………………. 62 3.5.3 Witzna……………………………………………………………………….. 67 3.5.4 Watchtower………………………………………………………………….. 70 3.6 Discussion…………………………………………………………………………. 75 Chapter 4: Plazas, Lime Plaster, and Methodologies 4.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………………... 77 4.2 Excavation…………………………………………………………………………. 77 4.3 Plaza Analysis via GIS and Google Earth Pro…………………………………….. 80 4.4 Proxemics and Estimated Plaza Capacity…………………………………………. 81 4.4.1 Estimating Plaza Capacities………………………………………………..... 82 4.5 A Brief Background of Lime Plaster……………………………………………… 86 4.5.1 Chemistry of Lime Plaster Production………………………………………. 86 4.5.2 Brief Overview of Old-World Lime Production…………………………….. 89 4.6. Mesoamerican