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Evidence of ancient Maya exploitation of salt, other marine resources, settlement, and sea trade is hidden in flooded mangrove landscapes on the cays, mainland, and in shallow offshore locations on the south coast of Belize. This paper includes a discussion of the coastal economy from the Middle Preclassic through the Postclassic periods (600 B.C.-A.D. 1500). Data from sites discovered and excavated since 1982 in the coastal area of the Port Honduras and Paynes Creek National Park support a model of coastal reliance marine resources and tree crops. The need for a regular supply of coastal salt to inland cities may have expanded the market for other marine resources. Obsidian imported from volcanic highlands documents long-distance trade throughout prehistory in the area. The island of Wild Cane Cay expanded its role in long-distance coastal trade after the abandonment of inland cities in southern Belize at the end of the Classic period. Inundation of the region documented from the depths of radiocarbon-dated archaeological deposits below the water table and from a sediment core indicates sea-level rise of at least 1m that submerged the coastal sites. The waterlogged deposits provided an ideal matrix for preservation of vertebrate material at Wild Cane Cay. The red mangrove (Rhizophora mangle) peat below the sea floor in a shallow lagoon preserved wooden buildings.
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The Belize Coast in Ancient Maya Society
Ancient Maya mariners used the sea as a transportation highway that provided access around the Yucatan and to inland rivers, and offshore, for trade, travel, and seafood. In contrast, the inland Maya viewed the sea as hazardous, with unmarked shoals, dangerous marine life, and underworld symbolism. The mercantile Maya on offshore islands such as Wild Cane Cay did not put their financial resources into monumental architecture on the scale of inland cities, but the coastal Maya did display their wealth by burying expensive and imported goods with their deceased citizens. Gold, turquoise, jadeite, imported pottery from Pacific Guatemala, from Honduras, and Mexico, and other goods, were transported along the coast and taken out of circulation and buried in graves at coastal trading ports. Salt was brokered from surplus household production as standard units in the form of salt cakes at the Paynes Creek Salt Works in southern Belize and elsewhere along the coast. The salt cakes were transported by boat and traded at inland markets, where there was a demand for dietary salt. Because of their standard size and non-perishable packaging, salt cakes were used as tokens for keeping track of financial transactions at marketplaces. Sea-level rise has submerged ancient Maya coastal sites, which are hidden from modern view, underwater or in the modern mangrove landscape, making the coastal Maya less visible in modern times compared to antiquity. The coastal Maya of southern Belize from the Middle Preclassic through the Postclassic are reviewed, with broader discussion of the ancient maritime Maya in general.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1826653
- PAR ID:
- 10526542
- Publisher / Repository:
- Institute of Archaeology, NICH, Belize
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Research Reports in Belizean Archaeology
- ISSN:
- ISBN 978-976-8264-25-1
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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