@article{df7884624dfa46059ce5660871f746b5,
title = "LOWLAND MAYA GENESIS: The LATE ARCHAIC to LATE EARLY FORMATIVE TRANSITION in the UPPER BELIZE RIVER VALLEY",
abstract = "The transition from the Late Archaic to the Late Early Formative period witnessed profound changes in the Maya lowlands. In addition to the establishment of the first settlements and agrarian communities, this critical phase of cultural development heralded the introduction of ceramics, saw changes in lithic technology, gave rise to inter-regional trade and exchange, and witnessed the introduction of a complex symbolic system expressed on portable objects. In this article, we synthesize data collected over the past several decades by various archaeological projects in western Belize to provide an overview of the cultural changes that unfolded during the Late Archaic to Late Early Formative period in the Upper Belize River Valley. We also provide evidence indicating that it was during this critical transitional period that we begin to see the establishment of several cultural traditions that became uniquely lowland Maya.",
author = "Awe, {Jaime J.} and Ebert, {Claire E.} and Stemp, {W. James} and Brown, {M. Kathryn} and Sullivan, {Lauren A.} and Garber, {James F.}",
note = "Funding Information: Permission to conduct research at Actun Halal, Blackman Eddy, Cahal Pech, Chechem Ha cave, and Xunantunich was graciously granted by the Belize Institute of Archaeology under the direction of Drs. Allan Moore, John Morris, Jaime Awe, and the late Harriot Topsey. Funding for our various research projects was generously provided by the Canadian Commission to UNESCO, the Gordon Childe Fund of the University of London, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Tilden Family Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the Rust Family Foundation, the Belize Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Northern Arizona University, Keene State College, the Pennsylvania State University, the University of Texas at San Antonio, and the BVAR, BVAP, and XAC Projects. We extend our sincere gratitude to all these institutions and foundations, to the many members of our projects, and to the many colleagues who have assisted us during 32 years of investigations in western Belize. Lastly, but certainly not least, we thank Joyce Marcus and Norman Hammond for their very constructive suggestions and comments that served to improve the quality of this article. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press.",
year = "2021",
doi = "10.1017/S0956536121000420",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "32",
pages = "519--544",
journal = "Ancient Mesoamerica",
issn = "0956-5361",
publisher = "Cambridge University Press",
number = "3",
}