The Pomoná Kingdom and its Hinterland

Panhale

The initial survey of this site revealed that Panhale was much more complex than initially estimated. During this first field season, two sectors that may represent different occupations were identified. The first (Panhale I), located along a natural terrace at about 100 m above the Usumacinta River. The second (Panhale II), located some 300 m above the river. In both sectors though, the site was layed out taking advantage of the broken topography that characterises the last limestone ridges of the Upper Usumacinta. Here a series of massive terraces were constructed following the natural topography of this mountain system. Sadly, Panhale has been considerably affected by the mining activities of the nearby lime plant, the exploration works of the Federal Commission of Electricity (CFE), and the ubiquitous actions of professional looters. Nevertheless, enough structural remains survive to give us a good idea of the importance that this site should have had within the realm of Pomoná. All together, Panhale is composed by at least four distinct architectural groups, all of which are located at commanding points along the rugged limestone hills (Figure 5).

The survey on Panhale’s first sector was partially facilitated by the fact that part of the terrace on which it’s located has been under cultivation, thus most of the secondary vegetation growth has been cleared. At this section three distinct architectural groups were identified, Groups A, B, and C:

Group A

Group A is located towards the eastern end of the terrace (Figure 6). Although patches of cultivated land, which we could not access, and secondary vegetation growth on fallow land limited our recognisance, we were able to map twelve structures at this group. The group consists of a series of small mounds (up to 1.5 m at the most) and platforms, some of which still preserve sections of their masonry base. Group A revealed the highest concentration of surface ceramics (constituting the 93% of the total from Panhale). The analysis of the ceramic assemblage is still in process, however, we did notice a relative abundance of fine orange paste, which would indicate a Late Classic occupation of this part of the site.

The abundance of ceramics, along with the presence of human skeletal remains around Structure 10, supports the idea that Group A may have corresponded to a domestic sector of Panhale. However, we have also to bear in mind that this area has been subject to cultivation for the past few years, and that the material remains could have been washed down from the higher slopes. Where concentration of archaeological materials was observed, all of the artefacts within a 50-cm radius were collected and bagged. This group yielded a total of 67 bags that constitutes 93% of the total from Panhale, and almost 86% of the total surface collection. A 2 × 2 m test pit was set a few meters to the west of Mound 3. Ceramics shards and fragments of chipped stone became more abundant at Level IV, approximately at 30 cm below the surface. Underneath this layer there was an increase in the size and abundance of amorphous limestone blocks, until we reached a depth of 50 to 70 cm.

Group B

Group B occupies the western half of this terrace (Figure 7). Unfortunately most of the massive platform on which this group lies has been severely damaged by a trench excavated with heavy machinery used by the lime plant to extract rock, and by the CFE. At certain points, the terrace was bulldozed to a depth of 2 m following an east-west direction for over 200 m, until it reached the edge of a cliff overlooking the Usumacinta River, where CFE constructed a concrete base to set a datum. Following this trench it is still possible to observe a series of retaining walls of up to 5 m long and the remains of various destroyed structures. The structures were constructed with well-dressed limestone blocks. Two major structures are still relatively well preserved at Group B. The first one is Structure 13, dubbed as the watchtower on the basis of its commanding view of the coastal plain and the excellent acoustics (Figure 8, shown below). This structure is located atop a series of terraces that were constructed following the natural contour of the hill. The watchtower consists of a mound that rises almost 10 m from the terrace floor, which sets it at an elevation of about 90 m from the river surface. On its summit the remains of a masonry structure with at least two separate rooms are still visible. The amount of debris at the base of the mound does not indicate that the top structure may have been vaulted. Some 100 m to the south of the watchtower lies Structure 14. This structure consists of six overlaying platforms facing north that rise 110 m from the river. The remains of a central staircase can still be seen on the fourth, fifth and sixth terraces. The summit is crowned by a low platform, again with a commanding view that extends towards the south stretch of the Usumacinta River. However, although a course of well-dressed limestone blocks could still be seen, no evidence that would suggest the existence of a vaulted structure was apparent.

Group C, Acropolis 1

Group C lies at the summit of a series of terraces that run along the northern slope of the hill. On the basis of its location, its layout, and size of one of its structures (Structure 16) we dubbed this group as Acropolis 1. Acropolis 1 lies on a massive platform, approximately 180 m long by 90 m at its widest section (Figure 9). Apart from its vantage point (Figure 10, shown below), the acropolis is surrounded in all its sides by very steep slopes, making it hard to access and thus, an easily defendable location. However, it is worth noting that the northeast section of the uppermost platform looks extremely damaged, with over 200 m of undressed rocks. Our local informants (some of whom worked for the lime plant or CFE) claim that the heavy machinery never reached this part, and indeed, a very steep slope hinders access to the terrace. Thus posing the possibility that the terrace was never finished.

Structure 16 lies at the eastern portion of the acropolis platform, facing to the Usumacinta River, due west. This was a stepped pyramid structure that still rises some 30 m above the Acropolis platform, and 180 m from the river surface. It was constructed with well-dressed blocks, that ranged from 30 to 20 cm to up to 30 by 60 cm, which covered a core of big amorphous rocks (Figure 11a, shown above; Figure 11b, shown below). Although this building has been heavily looted throughout time, a large section of the retaining walls are still fairly well preserved. Remains of a central staircase are still visible on the western façade. At the summit, the walls of a one-roomed temple still stand to a height of about 60 cm. Judging from the amount and type of debris observed it is possible that this may have been a vaulted temple.

The other visible structure at the acropolis is Structure 15. This is a low 30 by 18 m platform supporting a small mound that rises 2.5 m from the platform floor. This structure is much deteriorated, however, the sections that are still preserved suggest that the construction technique was different from that of Structure 16, with smaller limestone blocks dressed only on one side.

Although not as bountiful as in Group A, the surface materials recollected here were also abundant, this was in part due to the higher visibility provided by the cultivated field.

Group D, The Acropolis 2

At the highest point of the Boca del Cerro hills, at about 320 m above the river, a masonry structure that constitutes the second section of Panhale was surveyed. Group D, or Acropolis 2, is a completely distinct group and may represent a different occupation in the history of the site (Figure 12). Without any doubt, this group poses the most difficult access. It rises at least 10 m above the level of the present-day television station location (that was chosen precisely as the ideal location to set up the three microwave transmission towers). The precipitous and perilous ascent to the Acropolis 2 thwarted our ability to map it in greater detail with the total station. Thus, the only visible structure was mapped with compass and tape (Figure 13). Nevertheless we were able to tie the survey points to a GPS-based datum situated almost 300 m to the west, on the television station. Albeit the limited survey, enough was revealed to warrant our dubbing of this group the Acropolis 2. The structure was constructed using well-dressed limestone blocks (Figure 14, shown below), and was built upon a series of terraces adapted to the natural limestone ridge.

Undoubtedly, this location must have offered both ample visibility and defensibility in ancient times. It is also the only structure where we have unequivocal evidence of vaulted chambers. Unfortunately, these peculiarities also made it more attractive to professional looters, who have viciously ravaged the building by cutting two deep trenches across it compromising its structural stability. The trenches, however, exposed an intriguing substructure. According to my appreciation, this substructure reveals a close architectonic similarity to the Early Classic architectonic style that consists of apron mouldings and rounded corners present at Piedras Negras, style that has not yet been identified at Pomoná (Figure 15, shown below). One of our workers informed us that there were other masonry structures in the vicinity of Acropolis 2, unfortunately due to the dense vegetation growth and the difficulties posed by the broken terrain we were unable to locate these structures.

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