The data and interpretations presented in this chapter are the result of ongoing archaeological research that began more than two decades ago. Field investiga-lions conducted by the Proyecto Calakmul of the Universidad Autonoma de Campeche include the detailed survey and mapping of the thirty square kilometers that form the inner core of Calakmul, the excavation and consolidation of several monumental structures in the site epicenter, limited excavations in other sectors of the city and its environs, study of the hydraulic system surrounding the city center, environmental studies of the site and its sustaining area, and a wide variety of survey and mapping operations conducted within the Calakmul kingdom. In the laboratory we have conducted analyses of ceramics, stone tools and debitage, figurines, and other artifacts recovered from excavated contexts, and also have analyzed settlement and demographic data derived from our surveys. Because much of this work—particularly aspects of our settlement and demographic studies—continues, the results presented here should be considered preliminary.
Much of our discussion of the Terminal Classic occupation of Calakmul is derived from excavations in Structures I, II, III, and VII in the site epicenter. Survey and mapping operations in less imposing portions of the site and in its sustaining area have not revealed the existence of Terminal Classic and Early Postclassic structures similar to those described at other sites in the central Maya lowlands. Moreover, Terminal Classic ceramics are uncommon outside the site center. For these reasons, it seems likely that the Terminal Classic occupation of Calakmul was concentrated in the epicenter of the city. Although many of the ninth - and early-tenth-century inhabitants probably were commoners who moved into the elite architecture of the site center, there are strong indications of the persistence of a privileged class until a. d. 900 or later. A wide variety of imported goods—including pottery, obsidian, shell, jade, and metal—were recovered from Terminal Classic contexts in Structures I, II, III, and VII. These types of goods, though more broadly distributed in the Maya area during the Terminal Classic than in earlier periods, suggest the presence of an economic elite. Significantly, the erection until at least a. d. 899 of stelae with both hieroglyphic inscriptions and depictions of divine kings demonstrates the continued existence of royalty until a time that cannot be distinguished from the abandonment of Calakmul.
World History
