Jadeite Sources and Ancient Workshops: Archaeological Reconnaissance in the Upper Río El Tambor, Guatemala

Sitio Aguilucho

The principal focus of the 2004 field season was the mapping and study of the site of Aguilucho, located on a saddle roughly 1 km. west of Cerro Chucunhueso, a steep, volcanic promontory constituting one of the more striking land features in the region (Figures 21a & 21b, shown below). The hills of Aguilucho and Cerro Chucunhueso are separated by the aforementioned Quebrada Seca, a steep ravine containing not only the massive jadeite boulder but also translucent jadeite of various colors, including green and light purple as well as blue (Appendix, Figures 8, 9 and 10). To the west of Sitio Aguilucho, there is the Quebrada del Mico (Figure 29). A small, tributary ravine on the western side of this quebrada contains extensive natural sources of jadeite, including a highly translucent, greenish blue hue, with nearby lithic workshops (Appendix, Figure 11). This jade source is also entirely visible from Sitio Aguilucho, and clearly this site was oriented towards major jadeite sources in the region.

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Sitio Aguilucho is composed of a series of five hillside terraces supporting over forty structures, most of these apparently house platforms (Figure 22, Figure 23, Figure 24, Figure 25, Figure 26 and Figure 27). These platforms are generally small, and are generally under two meters in height. Many of the platforms are damaged by recent looting. However, the trenches and back dirt from these illicit excavations reveal little in the way of cultural material, and despite their extensive efforts, it is unlikely that the looters discovered burials or major offerings. In general, the architecture is relatively simple, being platforms lined with quadrangular schist blocks, or laja, on the exterior surface. Although serpentine is the predominant stone in the terrace areas, there is a schist outcrop roughly 300 meters west of Terrace 3 (Figure 23, below). In many cases, the platforms have two levels delineated by schist blocks, one marking the upper edge of the platform, and an interior, slightly higher level probably marking the edge of the superstructure. In fact, contemporary houses in Carrizal Grande and other towns in the area frequently have stones supporting the walls, with larger stones delineating the outer edges of the house platforms.

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Aside from the use of schist to define the edges of walls and platforms, another common architectural trait at Sitio Aguilucho is the alignment of platforms and structures up hillsides, creating an effect resembling a series of massive steps. In the case of Terrace 1, Structures 1 and 2 are in such an alignment, with Structure 2 being at the highest elevation of the site. Terrace 2, constituting the main plaza group of the site, has a series of four platforms extending northwards up a serpentine outcrop. Similarly, it will be noted that Los Encuentros 1, at the confluence of the Río La Puerta and the Río El Tambor, has a series of platforms rising westward to a serpentine outcrop (Figure 46, below). The orientation of platforms to serpentine may not be simply fortuitous in this region. As part of a series of platforms on Terrace 4 of Sitio Aguilucho, Structure 6 appears to be oriented directly to a pair of large serpentine boulders located south on the downhill slope. Given the importance of jadeworking in this region, it is conceivable that serpentine, a softer but far more prevalent greenstone that appears with jade bodies, was also of considerable symbolic significance in the area.

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