The San Bartolo Regional Archaeological Project: Results of the Third Field Season 20041 WILLIAM A. SATURNO MÓNICA URQUIZÚ The first two field seasons of our project in 2002 and located further areas with mounds, chultuns, and 2003 disclosed the importance of San Bartolo and its terraces, which will be investigated in future years. cultural value to Guatemala. Continuing investigations in the current season have provided further details on Reconnaissance chronology, architecture, and artwork, reinforcing many of the findings of the previous year. This year’s reconnaissance team was directed by Thomas In this season, work continued on the Pinturas Garrison. The site map of San Bartolo was expanded to and Ventanas pyramids and the Tigrillo palace, while include new areas, like the Jabalí group, while previously new excavations were begun in the Main Plaza and the mapped sections were corrected following excavations, Las Plumas group, located southeast of the Causeway. as in the Las Plumas group, as well as the Ventanas and The Jabalí group to the northeast of the site was Tigrillo structures. also investigated for the first time, as well as a lithics A second area of interest for the reconnaissance team was the intersite zone between San Bartolo and workshop located in a residential area northeast of 2 Ventanas (Figure 1). Xultun. In this 25 km area, a ten percent sample is being mapped. Using satellite images from NASA, a series of 250 m2 quadrangles have been plotted and designated Excavations in Chaj K’ek’ Cue for detailed reconnaissance using high-resolution GPS This year the regional component of the San Bartolo and a total station. The team, consisting of students from project included excavations at the site of Chaj K’ek’ various universities in the U.S. and Jose Garrido López Cue. While ground-testing satellite imagery in the of Guatemala, mapped 25% of the sample area this 2003 field season, the reconnaissance team mapped the season. These efforts will be followed up in the future majority of this site, which is located on the shore of the with a more intensive mapping. The goal of the intersite Bajo Azúcar, three kilometers southeast of San Bartolo. study is to understand population dynamics during the The site has the potential to provide information on Preclassic–Classic transition, using reconnaissance data ancient adaptations to the regional landscape. and test pitting. Excavations in Structure A revealed a floor with a Finally, specialists in mapping and satellite imagery level of remodeling without fill. The east and west walls at NASA verified the data obtained in the field, were located, as well as a small plaza to the east of the comparing it to their satellite images. structure. The majority of the ceramics were dated to the Late Classic but also included some Late Preclassic Ceramic Analysis sherds. It seems that the structure was built in the Late Classic using Late Preclassic materials in some of the fill. This was undertaken by Patricia Rivera. The site’s Concurrent with this excavation, GPS reconnaissance occupation begins in the Middle Preclassic and extends to the Terminal Classic. Preliminary analysis identified 1 17 complete vessels, eight from excavations and nine This article is a translation of Mónica Urquizú and William A. Saturno, 2005, Proyecto Arqueológico Regional San Bartolo, Petén: from reconnaissance. From the first group, six were resultados de la tercera temporada de campo 2004, in XVIII Simposio assigned to the Late Preclassic and two to the Late de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala, 2004, edited by Juan Classic, while all of the vessels from reconnaissance date Pedro Laporte, Bárbara Arroyo, Héctor L. Escobedo, Héctor E. to the Late Classic. Mejía, v. 1, pp. 283-290. Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes; Instituto The ceramic sample obtained shows a different de Antropología e Historia; Asociación Tikal; Foundation for the surface finish in the three largest structures investigated, Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, Guatemala. Pinturas, Ventanas, and the Palace. Late Classic material 4 The PARI Journal 13(3), 2013, 4-11. 88 A 87 A 89 B 86 85 90 N Ventanas Grou p 92 83 84 91 C 20 D B 81 E 82 C C A 79 B 19 21 22 78 B 14 15 Contour Interval: 2m 80 D 23 B D 77 A 76 26 A 0 50 100m 70 69 25 24 A Pinturas Group 74 75 66 67 13 30 28 73 68 71 27 72 29 A 65 M. 5 St. 1 Ag. 2 10 St. 3 33 60 St. 2 31 32 9 Ag. 1 35 6 Ag. 3 8 M. 3 Ag. 4 34 12 61 M. 2 M. 4 7 M. 1 5 64 62 63 59 4 36 37 1 58 57 Sinkhole 38 3 39 41 Ag. 5 2 40 42 11 43 56 C B 44 D A E B M. 6 A 94 93 55 96 A C B C B 95 16 D A A 45 E 47 A 50 A St. 4 97 48 51 49 98 46 52 17 M. 7 A B Limestone Quarry 99 53 18 101 100 102 C B 103 54 D A Figure 1. Map of the San Bartolo archaeological site. was not found in these structures, only in the residential Excavations in the Jabalí Group areas. Here a broad typological pattern extends from The Grupo Jabalí is located 470 m west of the Ventanas the Late Preclassic to the Late Classic. It is hoped that pyramid. This is an architectural complex of the Triadic an investigation focused on technological function form, with a Late Classic occupation. It was discovered and raw materials will lead to an understanding of through NASA satellite photographs in 2003. Its the development and specialization of the artisans architectural characteristics are similar to those of other manufacturing these ceramics. contemporaneous sites like Group H at Uaxactun, the Figure 3.Ð Plan of San Bartolo, illustrating the V entanas Northand Pinturas Acropolis Groups at Tikal, . and the Danta complex at El Study of Lithic Artifacts Mirador. During the 2004 field season the study of San Bartolo’s This work was carried out by Mónica Pellecer. The lithic artifacts was initiated by Joshua Kwoka, who group comprises a platform with inset stairways on its discovered a lithic workshop in the vicinity of Structure east side supporting three structures with a central patio. 86, about 150 m north of the Ventanas pyramid. The building with the biggest dimensions (Structure A) Excavations concentrated on a trash deposit next to is found on the west, on top of an elongated platform Structure 86. Analysis of this material should throw light with a central stairway and corners formed by lateral on the manufacture of tools as well as the quantity of stairways. The structure and its platform are oriented lithic artifacts produced at the site. Future investigations east-west. Its northern and southern sectors underwent will focus on the excavation of Structure 86 and the a series of remodelings, probably during the Classic platform beside it (designated Structure 87), as well as period. the low, L-shaped Structure 85, also in this group. One of the most interesting finds in this group 5 Saturno and Urquizú N 0 5 m Figure 2. North-south profile of the of the Ventanas pyramid. resulted from an excavation in which Mónica Pellecer covered with a thick coating of stucco, which remains in was assisted by Julio Cotón. It involved a ritual deposit a good state of preservation. composed of two stuccoed walls sloped like taluds, The alfarda of the pyramid’s stairway was partially with a slight depression in the central space between uncovered and observed to be similar to that of Structure them. E-VII-Sub at Uaxactun. Masks that had once decorated the second terrace of the building were found to be Test Pitting in the Central Plaza destroyed (Figure 3). In addition to the work of filling in looters’ tunnels, A program of test pitting was undertaken in the various test pits were sunk in order to find the second Central Plaza to obtain ceramic material in order to and fourth construction phases. The interior of a determine its chronology, as well as to identify the looters’ tunnel in the middle of the pyramid’s base was different construction phases and remodelings and the investigated. There tunnels were excavated on east– plaza’s association with the different structures and west and north–south axes in order to find the second their function. This work was done by Boris Beltrán construction phase of the pyramid. with the assistance of Hugo Ortiz. The test pits were Other test pits were sunk to locate the building’s initially oriented to the cardinal directions, digging near corners and a portion of the stairway of the final each of the structures which surround the plaza. The construction phase. The presence of lateral stairways investigation located thirteen distinct levels of plaza flanking the central stairway was verified. And flooring on average, of which eight were remodelings. the building’s corners were found to have insets. The preliminary analysis of the majority of the material Investigation will continue in the future in order to recovered from the excavations pertains to the Late completely understand the architecture of the final Preclassic. phase and probe for other masks within earlier versions of the facade. Ventanas Pyramid There excavations were conducted by Mónica Urquizú Tigrillo Palace in collaboration with Orlando Moreno (Figure 2). Test This year saw continuing investigations of the Tigrillo pits detected the presence of architecture comprising palace complex, located along the west side of the a platform with apron molding, without a temple on Great Plaza to the southeast of the Ventanas pyramid.