La Amelia
Encyclopedia
La Amelia is a Pre-Columbian
Maya
archaeological site near Itzan
, in the lower Pasión River
region of the Petén Department of Guatemala
. It formed a polity
in the Late Classic
(AD 600 to 830), and was involved in the war between Tikal
and Calakmul
followed, in 650, by the take over of Dos Pilas
, leading to centuries of war until this region collapsed around 830, being the first of the Classic sites in this area to be abandoned.
of Sayaxché
, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south of La Florida and the Pasión River
. The site sits at a level of 150 to 160 m (492.1 to 524.9 ft) above mean sea level
. The low lying areas around the hills are prone to flooding. The main site area is maintained as a forest park by the nearby village of San Francisco El Tumbo. More than 90 percent of the mounds at the site have been looted.
kingdom of Mutal that was first ruled from Dos Pilas
and then from Aguateca
. The site is located to the northwest of Dos Pilas, and may have originally been called B'ahlam. The rapidly expanding Dos Pilas kingdom conquered La Amelia in the early 8th century. The occupational history of La Amelia appears to have been brief and limited to the Late Classic.
In AD 802 the last known ruler of the kingdom, Tan Te' K'inich
, supervised a ritual conducted by the ruler of La Amelia, Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot
, the last reference anywhere to Tan Te' K'inich. Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot, the local La Amelia king, is depicted on La Amelia Panel 2, dated to AD 804 and continued to raise monuments at the site, the last of which that can be dated was erected in 807 and contains the last reference to the Petexbatún kingdom of Mutal. Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot is also mentioned on Panel 1 and Hieroglyphic Stairway 1 at the site. He is known to have been born on 25 June 760 and to have been enthroned on 1 May 802.
La Amelia was abandoned some time in the middle of the 9th century AD.
in his 1938 volume The Inscriptions of Peten. Yale University
carried out further investigations from 1984 to 1986.
A mapping and excavation project was conducted at the site by the La Amelia Archaeological Project in 1997. That work was directed by Dr. Antonia Foias of Williams College
. During the summer 1997 field season, the La Amelia Archaeological Project completed mapping of the central site area and excavated several test units.
The "Group of the Hieroglyphic Stairway" is situated 0.5 kilometre (0.310686368324903 mi)north of the main plaza, in the northwest quadrant of the site, and was constructed principally by terracing and flattening the summit of a natural hill. This group exhibits three frontal terraces, and an interior courtyard on the summit which is surrounded by six narrow range structures. Access to the lowest terrace is achieved via a 5-step monolithic stairway featuring limestone blocks carved with glyphs and scenes. Two carved panels (called alternately Stela 1 and Panel 2) originally decorated the front of the structure to either side of the stairway.
of the Carnegie Institution first documented the site of La Amelia in 1937, he noted the presence of six hieroglyphic blocks which functioned as risers along the uppermost level of the monolithic stairway. This led him to identify the Hieroglyphic Stairway at the site, and to name the associated architectural group accordingly. A seventh carved block was recovered in 1997 from a test unit excavated on the plaza immediately southwest of the staircase.
Three of the carved stones from the Hieroglyphic Stairway were entirely glyphic, while the four remaining stones (including the one recovered in 1997) feature reclining male figures along with short texts. Stephen Houston documented one of the three glyphic stones, although no record exists of the other two. Shook sketched the three steps he saw that depicted human figures, but did not include any details regarding the glyphic texts on those stones. None of the six steps recorded by Shook remained in situ
by 1997, and their ultimate disposition is unknown.
The four carved steps featuring human figures from the Hieroglyphic Stairway at La Amelia all display images of simply-dressed males, who were likely ancestors of the site's ruler. All four of these figures hold heads or masks of God K
. The panel discovered in 1997 included a Calendar Round
date of 2 Caban 2 Muan, and an associated text describing a ritual involving God K which took place on that date. The emblem glyph for the figure on this panel may be that of Tamarindito
.
The carved panels which originally flanked the Hieroglyphic Stairway at La Amelia depict dancing rulers in full ceremonial costume, as well as glyphic texts. A lower register on each monument depicts a reclining jaguar
which looks up at the dancing ruler. Panel 2 records a date of AD 804 and depicts the ruler Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot dressed as a ballplayer. Panel 2 now resides in front of the Mayor's building in Sayaxché. Stela 1 was originally located west of the Hieroglyphic Stairway and records a date of AD 807. Stela 1 now resides at the National Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology in Guatemala City
.
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
Maya
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
archaeological site near Itzan
Itzan
Itzan is a Maya archaeological site located in the municipality of La Libertad in the Petén Department of Guatemala. Various small structures at the site were destroyed in the 1980s during oil exploration activities by Sonpetrol and Basic Resources Ltd, prompting rescue excavations by archaeologists...
, in the lower Pasión River
Pasión River
The Pasión River is a river located in the northern lowlands region of Guatemala. The river is fed by a number of upstream tributaries whose sources lie in the hills of Alta Verapaz. These flow in a general northerly direction to form the Pasión, which then tends westwards to meet up with the...
region of the Petén Department of Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. It formed a polity
Polity
Polity is a form of government Aristotle developed in his search for a government that could be most easily incorporated and used by the largest amount of people groups, or states...
in the Late Classic
Mesoamerican chronology
Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...
(AD 600 to 830), and was involved in the war between Tikal
Tikal
Tikal is one of the largest archaeological sites and urban centres of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization. It is located in the archaeological region of the Petén Basin in what is now northern Guatemala...
and Calakmul
Calakmul
Calakmul is a Maya archaeological site in the Mexican state of Campeche, deep in the jungles of the greater Petén Basin region. It is from the Guatemalan border. Calakmul was one of the largest and most powerful ancient cities ever uncovered in the Maya lowlands...
followed, in 650, by the take over of Dos Pilas
Dos Pilas
Dos Pilas is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization located in what is now the department of Petén, Guatemala. It dates to the Late Classic Period, being founded by an offshoot of the dynasty of the great city of Tikal in AD 629 in order to control trade routes in the Petexbatún region,...
, leading to centuries of war until this region collapsed around 830, being the first of the Classic sites in this area to be abandoned.
Location
La Amelia is located on a series of low hills in the municipalityMunicipalities of Guatemala
The departments of Guatemala are divided into 332 municipalities or municipios. The municipalities are listed below, by department:-Alta Verapaz Department:*Cahabón*Chahal*Chisec*Cobán*Fray Bartolomé de las Casas*Lanquín*Panzós*Raxruha...
of Sayaxché
Sayaxché
Sayaxché is a municipality in the El Petén department of Guatemala, on the Río La Pasión river. In 2000, it had 47,693 inhabitants.The city was founded in 1874 to provide accommodation for forest workers of Jamet Sastré logging company. It obtain a municipal status in 1929.El Rosario National Park...
, 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south of La Florida and the Pasión River
Pasión River
The Pasión River is a river located in the northern lowlands region of Guatemala. The river is fed by a number of upstream tributaries whose sources lie in the hills of Alta Verapaz. These flow in a general northerly direction to form the Pasión, which then tends westwards to meet up with the...
. The site sits at a level of 150 to 160 m (492.1 to 524.9 ft) above mean sea level
Above mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
. The low lying areas around the hills are prone to flooding. The main site area is maintained as a forest park by the nearby village of San Francisco El Tumbo. More than 90 percent of the mounds at the site have been looted.
History
La Amelia was a subordinate site in the Classic Period PetexbatúnPetexbatún
Petexbatún is a small lake formed by a river of the same name, which is a tributary of the La Pasion river. It is near Sayaxché, located in the southern area of the Guatemalan department of Petén....
kingdom of Mutal that was first ruled from Dos Pilas
Dos Pilas
Dos Pilas is a Pre-Columbian site of the Maya civilization located in what is now the department of Petén, Guatemala. It dates to the Late Classic Period, being founded by an offshoot of the dynasty of the great city of Tikal in AD 629 in order to control trade routes in the Petexbatún region,...
and then from Aguateca
Aguateca
Aguateca is a Maya site located in northern Guatemala's Petexbatun Basin, in the department of Petén. The first settlements at Aguateca date to the Late Preclassic period , and the city was sacked and abandoned in the early 9th century. Aguateca sits on top of a tall limestone bluff, creating a...
. The site is located to the northwest of Dos Pilas, and may have originally been called B'ahlam. The rapidly expanding Dos Pilas kingdom conquered La Amelia in the early 8th century. The occupational history of La Amelia appears to have been brief and limited to the Late Classic.
In AD 802 the last known ruler of the kingdom, Tan Te' K'inich
Tan Te' K'inich
Tan Te' K'inich was a Maya king of the ancient city of Aguateca, in the Petén Department of modern Guatemala.-Biography:He was born on January 22, 748...
, supervised a ritual conducted by the ruler of La Amelia, Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot
Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot
Not to be confused with Ajaw B'ot, king of Seibal.Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot was a Maya king of La Amelia, an ancient city near Itzan in the Petén Department of modern Guatemala. La Amelia was abandoned some time in the middle of the 9th century AD.He is mentioned on Panel 1 and Hieroglyphic Stairway...
, the last reference anywhere to Tan Te' K'inich. Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot, the local La Amelia king, is depicted on La Amelia Panel 2, dated to AD 804 and continued to raise monuments at the site, the last of which that can be dated was erected in 807 and contains the last reference to the Petexbatún kingdom of Mutal. Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot is also mentioned on Panel 1 and Hieroglyphic Stairway 1 at the site. He is known to have been born on 25 June 760 and to have been enthroned on 1 May 802.
La Amelia was abandoned some time in the middle of the 9th century AD.
Modern history
The Carnegie Institution carried out investigations at the site in 1937. That project documented several carved stone monuments, and created a partial site map which was published by Sylvanus MorleySylvanus Morley
Sylvanus Griswold Morley was an American archaeologist, epigrapher, and Mayanist scholar who made significant contributions toward the study of the pre-Columbian Maya civilization in the early twentieth century....
in his 1938 volume The Inscriptions of Peten. Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
carried out further investigations from 1984 to 1986.
A mapping and excavation project was conducted at the site by the La Amelia Archaeological Project in 1997. That work was directed by Dr. Antonia Foias of Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
. During the summer 1997 field season, the La Amelia Archaeological Project completed mapping of the central site area and excavated several test units.
The site
La Amelia is a small site covering an area of approximately 0.74 square kilometre (0.285715597358476 sq mi). The site is divided into four groups, two of which have monumental architecture, and a further 13 smaller residential groups. The 1997 mapping project recorded a total of 71 structures at the site. The central plaza area appears to have been focused around the "Group of the Three Pyramids" in the southern portion of the site. That group included three pyramids of between 3 and 8 m (9.8 and 26.2 ft) in height, all of which have been severely damaged by looter trenches.The "Group of the Hieroglyphic Stairway" is situated 0.5 kilometre (0.310686368324903 mi)north of the main plaza, in the northwest quadrant of the site, and was constructed principally by terracing and flattening the summit of a natural hill. This group exhibits three frontal terraces, and an interior courtyard on the summit which is surrounded by six narrow range structures. Access to the lowest terrace is achieved via a 5-step monolithic stairway featuring limestone blocks carved with glyphs and scenes. Two carved panels (called alternately Stela 1 and Panel 2) originally decorated the front of the structure to either side of the stairway.
Monuments
When Edwin M. ShookEdwin M. Shook
Edward M. Shook was an American archaeologist and Mayanist scholar, best known for his extensive field work and publications on pre-Columbian Maya civilization sites.Ed Shook was born in Newton, North Carolina...
of the Carnegie Institution first documented the site of La Amelia in 1937, he noted the presence of six hieroglyphic blocks which functioned as risers along the uppermost level of the monolithic stairway. This led him to identify the Hieroglyphic Stairway at the site, and to name the associated architectural group accordingly. A seventh carved block was recovered in 1997 from a test unit excavated on the plaza immediately southwest of the staircase.
Three of the carved stones from the Hieroglyphic Stairway were entirely glyphic, while the four remaining stones (including the one recovered in 1997) feature reclining male figures along with short texts. Stephen Houston documented one of the three glyphic stones, although no record exists of the other two. Shook sketched the three steps he saw that depicted human figures, but did not include any details regarding the glyphic texts on those stones. None of the six steps recorded by Shook remained in situ
In situ
In situ is a Latin phrase which translated literally as 'In position'. It is used in many different contexts.-Aerospace:In the aerospace industry, equipment on board aircraft must be tested in situ, or in place, to confirm everything functions properly as a system. Individually, each piece may...
by 1997, and their ultimate disposition is unknown.
The four carved steps featuring human figures from the Hieroglyphic Stairway at La Amelia all display images of simply-dressed males, who were likely ancestors of the site's ruler. All four of these figures hold heads or masks of God K
God K
God K is the Schellhas-Zimmermann-Taube designation of a codical Maya deity representing lightning . In earlier, especially Classic depictions, his main characteristics are a blade or torch running through his forehead, and a serpent for one of his legs...
. The panel discovered in 1997 included a Calendar Round
Calendar round
In the Mesoamerican calendars, calendar round dates are composed by interlacing the dates of a 260-day period with dates from a 365-day period...
date of 2 Caban 2 Muan, and an associated text describing a ritual involving God K which took place on that date. The emblem glyph for the figure on this panel may be that of Tamarindito
Tamarindito
Tamarindito is an archaeological site of the Maya civilization located along an escarpment in the Petén department of Guatemala. The city was the capital of the Petexbatún region of the southwestern Petén during the Early Classic period but was displaced by the newly founded conquest state of Dos...
.
The carved panels which originally flanked the Hieroglyphic Stairway at La Amelia depict dancing rulers in full ceremonial costume, as well as glyphic texts. A lower register on each monument depicts a reclining jaguar
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
which looks up at the dancing ruler. Panel 2 records a date of AD 804 and depicts the ruler Lachan K'awiil Ajaw Bot dressed as a ballplayer. Panel 2 now resides in front of the Mayor's building in Sayaxché. Stela 1 was originally located west of the Hieroglyphic Stairway and records a date of AD 807. Stela 1 now resides at the National Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology in Guatemala City
Guatemala City
Guatemala City , is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Guatemala and Central America...
.