@article{9ca0aa44de2448c1b3a74e3304c93cfd,
title = "APPLYING REGIONAL, CONTEXTUAL, ETHNOHISTORIC, and ETHNOGRAPHIC APPROACHES for UNDERSTANDING the SIGNIFICANCE of PERI-ABANDONMENT DEPOSITS in WESTERN BELIZE",
abstract = "The discovery of cultural remains on or above the floors of rooms and courtyards at several Maya sites has been interpreted by some archaeologists as problematic deposits, squatter's refuse, as evidence for feasting, termination rituals, de facto refuse, or rapid abandonment as a result of warfare. Investigations by the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project have recorded similar deposits at several surface and subterranean sites in Western Belize. Our regional, contextual, and methodological approaches for studying these deposits, coupled with ethnohistoric and ethnographic information, provide limited support for the interpretation of these remains as de facto refuse or due to rapid abandonment. Instead, we argue that these deposits are more likely the result of peri-abandonment activities such as propitiation rituals and/or pilgrimages during and after the gradual abandonment of sites in the Belize River Valley.",
author = "Awe, {Jaime J.} and Christophe Helmke and Aimers, {James J.} and Ebert, {Claire E.} and Stemp, {W. James} and Hoggarth, {Julie A.}",
note = "Funding Information: Archaeological investigations at Altun Ha, Cahal Pech, Caracol, and Xunantunich were conducted by Jaime Awe as part of the Tourism Development Project (TDP). Investigations at Baking Pot, Cahal Pech, Lower Dover, Pook's Hill, and Actun Tunichil Mucnal, Barton Creek Cave, and Chechem Ha Cave were conducted under the auspices of the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance (BVAR) Project and the Western Belize Regional Cave Project (WBRCP) directed by Jaime Awe and Julie Hoggarth. Funding for the TDP came from the Belize Ministry of Tourism and Culture. The research conducted by the WBRCP was funded by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada grant to Awe, and funding for research and additional conservation programs at Cahal Pech, Baking Pot, Lower Dover, and Xunantunich were generously provided by the Canadian Commission to UNESCO, the Gordon Childe Fund of the University of London, the Tilden Family Foundation, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Awe), and from the National Science Foundation (BCS-1460369, Hoggarth). We are particularly grateful to Douglas Tilden for assisting us with our research and conservation efforts in the Belize Valley, and to the many students, colleagues, and Belizean partners who have worked with us during the past 31 years of the BVAR Project. Last, but certainly not least, we extend our sincerest gratitude to the Belize Institute of Archaeology for their continued support of our ongoing investigations in Western Belize. Funding Information: Archaeological investigations at Altun Ha, Cahal Pech, Caracol, and Xunantunich were conducted by Jaime Awe as part of the Tourism Development Project (TDP). Investigations at Baking Pot, Cahal Pech, Lower Dover, Pook's Hill, and Actun Tunichil Mucnal, Barton Creek Cave, and Chechem Ha Cave were conducted under the auspices of the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance (BVAR) Project and the Western Belize Regional Cave Project (WBRCP) directed by Jaime Awe and Julie Hoggarth. Funding for the TDP came from the Belize Ministry of Tourism and Culture. The research conducted by the WBRCP was funded by a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada grant to Awe, and funding for research and additional conservation programs at Cahal Pech, Baking Pot, Lower Dover, and Xunantunich were generously provided by the Canadian Commission to UNESCO, the Gordon Childe Fund of the University of London, the Tilden Family Foundation, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Awe), and from the National Science Foundation (BCS-1460369, Hoggarth). We are particularly grateful to Douglas Tilden for assisting us with our research and conservation efforts in the Belize Valley, and to the many students, colleagues, and Belizean partners who have worked with us during the past 31 years of the BVAR Project. Last, but certainly not least, we extend our sincerest gratitude to the Belize Institute of Archaeology for their continued support of our ongoing investigations in Western Belize. Publisher Copyright: Copyright {\textcopyright} Cambridge University Press, 2020.",
year = "2020",
month = mar,
day = "1",
doi = "10.1017/S095653611900021X",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "31",
pages = "109--126",
journal = "Ancient Mesoamerica",
issn = "0956-5361",
publisher = "Cambridge University Press",
number = "1",
}