La Pasión and Petexbatún
Area
Arroyo de Piedra:
Located in the Protected area ( 31 sq Km.) of
Dos Pilas,
The
history of this site have been predated to the middle Classic period, and
perhaps dominated by
Ceibal, but with
the emergence of Dos Pilas it became an important secondary center in the Petexbatún polity. Located midway between Dos Pilas (2-3 km to the
west-southwest) and
Tamarindito
(3 km to the east),
Architecture in Arroyo de Piedra is different from that of Dos Pilas and Aguateca but very similar to
Tamarindito, also, hieroglyphic data shows that Arroyo de Piedra and Tamarindito
formed a polity prior to the foundation of Dos Pilas by
Tikal, that become its
rivals, in fact the number 4 ruler of the Dos Pilas/Aguateca dynasty was
captured in a battle with this polity. It too was abandoned in the late 8th
century, following the collapse of Dos Pilas and its vassal cities.
|
Stela 1 |
Tamarindito
and Arroyo de Piedra Emblem Glyph
|
Stela 4 |
Tamarindito:
Located along a
escarpment,
Tamarindito
is thought to have been the capital of a ruling lineage
in the Early Classic Petexbatún, absorbed in the Late Classic by the new power
that established itself at Dos Pilas. It must have posed a threat, given the
oversight function established at the nearby center of Arroyo de Piedra. This
site formed a polity with Arroyo de Piedra, sharing the Emblem Glyph,
Tamarindito is a small site with more than 140 structures and also shows, 8
Stelas and 2 altars, a ball court and a Hieroglyphic staircase named the
Prisoner Staircase that relates the defeat and capture of the Dos Pilas ruler,
this polity have strong links with
Machaquilá to the east. The site also
features a Dam made during the Middle Classic that shows an intensive
agricultural system. the Lagoon has been the object of interesting
paleontological investigations that have shown traces of occupation since the
Middle Pre Classic to the Terminal Classic. You can visit Tamarindito, Dos Pilas
and Arroyo de Piedra in the same day
|
Looted Sculpture and Stelas, Tamarindito |
Palace |
Hieroglyphic
Staircase |
Nacimiento:
This site is located nearby
Aguateca and has 130 structures
in 26 groups the Central Plaza has a Temple Pyramid on top of the
largest cave
of the site, and a ball court. The site's area is 1.5 sq. Km. This site shows a
close link with Aguateca
|
Main
Residential Area |
Punta de Chimino:
Another
site belonging to the
Petexbatún state
is a small Late Classic Site, (600-900
AD). located on the Petexbatún lakeshore in a peninsula, this site was the last
refuge for the Dos Pilas and Aguateca rulers, it was heavily
fortified, and also it is a nice place to visit if you enjoy
the Nature like bird watching, and other rare species, the site has visible Stelas,
and mounds,, it also has 3 man made pits, the largest
being 140 mt. long, 45 mt. wide and 9 mt. deep, that separates it from the main
land, There evidence of rock surrounded terraces for intensive
crops that made this site self sufficient in food combined with
fish and domestic animals. There are platforms for
intensive agriculture within the city, showing its defensive
characteristics. The last Date is 830 AD, along with
Ceibal, Punta de Chimino was the last Classic site in this
region.
 |
Stela
1I |
|
Acrópolis, Main Temple |
Pom Palm |
Itzán and La Amelia:
Itzán is a site on a small tributary of the Pasión River, only
20 km northwest of Dos Pilas, it belonged to the Petexbatún
polity, featuring small temples with hieroglyphic stairways, and
Stelas. Maya elites and commoners intensively occupied the Itzan
escarpment, located in the lower Río de la Pasión drainage
system of Petén, Guatemala, during the Preclassic and Protoclassic periods. Itzán was colonized during the Xe phase of
the Middle Preclassic period, and its occupation intensified
during the late Middle and Late Preclassic periods, when elite
residential and ceremonial facilities were erected. During the
Late Preclassic and Protoclassic periods, the escarpment was
dominated by
Chaak Ak'al, a large site distinguished by massive
pyramids and lengthy wall-like constructions, which undoubtedly
served as a polity capital. Subsequent to the Protoclassic
period, the locus of activity atop the escarpment shifted back
to Itzan, which served as a polity capital through the Late
Classic period. From data collected at
Itzan,
Chaak Ak'al, and
other sites of the lower Río de la Pasión drainage system, a
picture of regional Preclassic Maya political geography is
emerging.
La Amelia
a site nearby was occupied in
the Late Classic (600 to 830 AD), and involved in the war
between Tikal and Calakmul, in fact the first site to be
attacked by Tikal
was Itzán on 650 AD, followed by the Take over of
Dos Pilas,
leading to
centuries of war
until this
region collapsed on 830 AD, being
the first of the Classic sites in this area to be abandoned.
|
Itzán
Emblem Glyph |
La Amelia St 2 detail |
La Amelia St 2 |
La
Amelia St 1 Last Date in the Petexbatún area |
