Search for: All records

The archaeological site of Nixtun-Chi’ch’ is located on the Candelaria Peninsula on the western side of Lake Petén Itzá, Guatemala. The site, covering over 2.5km², has been intermittently excavated since 1995 and contains more than 450 buildings. These investigations have revealed the long-term occupation of the site from the Middle Preclassic (800-400/300 BCE) to the present. The site’s Preclassic occupation was both intensive and extensive with the construction of many monumental structures and a gridded city plan. Unlike the abundant and recent coverage of the Preclassic period at NixtunCh’ich’, literature on the Postclassic period (950-1525 CE) is limited. This paper focuses on the Postclassic period whose occupations are scattered across the site above the Preclassic period constructions. The excavated Postclassic occupations are located outside of the central core of the site, mostly along the lakeshore. What was the situation at Nixtun-Ch’ich’ during the Postclassic period? What was the livelihood? We believe that combining archeological data with historical documents allows for effective investigation. Using both archaeological data and Spanish historical documents from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries we aim to answer these questions through a reconstruction of these architectural patterns and lifestyles of the people at Nixtun-Ch’ich’ during the Postclassic period.