The Architectural Development of an Early Maya Structure at Nakbé, Petén, Guatemala

Tunnel Excavations

The latest stairway at the eastern base of Structure 1 consisted of limestone blocks, measuring .80 x .40 x .30 m., .73 x .32 x .35 m, and .72 x .27 x .35 placed in parallel, lineal, Late Preclassic fashion. These stones had been placed on an earlier version of the same stairway so that what had previously been a tread, now became a riser. Each stairway phase had about the same size blocks. Exposure to the elements, trees, and probable stone robbing had severely damaged these steps, and their condition probably would not be conducive to restoration or consolidation measures.

The second interior steps (Str. 1 2nd) were found about 1.10 meters into the building. The fill between the first and second stairs had ceramics and two large chert cores with two large primary flakes were recovered from this material. In comparison to the previous steps and subsequent steps, these steps were radically different in construction form, consisting of smaller, rectangular stones measuring approximately .46 wide x .13 high x .60 m long and .38 wide x .15 high x .40 long m, placed in the tread of the steps with ample mortar between the stones. The stones and mortar had a thin layer of stucco .015 to .20 m thick applied over the steps.

The third steps (Str. 1 3rd) were found an additional .88 m into the building. The loose dark soil fill under the second stairway and on top of the third stairway consisted of an extremely rich deposit (Lot 72) of ceramics, lithics, carbon, and stucco fragments. These materials consisted of well-preserved Chicanel, Late Preclassic sherds, such as Alta Mira Fluted bowls, unslipped restricted neck vessels, and wide everted rims of plates with broad, pre-slip modelled grooves encircling the rim. This wealth of materials correspond to the wealth displayed in the size and form of the steps of this large-scale construction phase. The stones of this phase consist of massive blocks laid end to end, measuring .44 wide x .34 m high x .90 to 1.15 m long. The first step was placed directly on the third floor of the plaza level. The consistency of the size and scale of these stones suggest that political and economic organization resulted in a strong specialized production and construction period. It is believed that the earlier of the two major construction phases of the facade is associated with this stairway.

The earliest stairway apparently represented the major transition from smaller, more simplistic architecture to the large construction now visible. There were no earlier stairways encountered, and the dark brown mud tightly packed in stone and marl. This stairway had buried four superimposed structures which were encountered about seven meters in from the first stair. Each structure varied substantially from the previous building that had been buried by the subsequent architecture. This pattern replicated the known changes observed in other areas of the site.

The datum consisted of a sawed-off ramon tree trunk located in the approximate center of the excavation which had an elevation of 1.36 m above the natural surface level of the plaza. The excavation consisted of two excavation areas, Trench "a" (on the southern side of the area) which was placed to detect the presence of monumental masks (Lots 02, 03, 05, 06, 10, 11, 31-43). Trench "b" (on the north side) was placed to reveal the stairway (Lots 01, 07, 08, 09, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 51-63). These two excavation areas were partially divided by a 3.0 m wide unexcavated area which served as a control section. Trench "a" measured 3.5 m wide (north to south) and 9.5 m long (east-west), while Trench "b" measured 4.0 m wide (N-S) and 10.5 m long (E-W).

Trench "c" constituted the western section of the 3 meter wide unexcavated area to reveal the bench and panel of the last phase of the structure and join the "a" and "b" excavations of the facade and stairway (Lots 17, 18, 23b, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23a). The excavated area measured 3 m (N-S) by 5.5 m (E-W). Trench "d" was placed on the southern side of the large monumental mask that was found in Trench "a" and "c" so as to determine the size and extent of the mask and assocation with panel. The panel on the southern side of the mask was in poor condition, presumably the result of the intrusive roots of a large tree that must have grown there in the past.

The central stairway of the structure was exposed for 3.6 m from the southern edge of the stairway. The final version of the stairway was in extremely poor condition, apparently due to the exposure of the elements. The blocks along the southern side of the stairway were in somewhat better condition, and the sequence indicated that the final stairway consisted of a major construction and a modification, so that two episodes of construction were involved. The construction episode consisted of a large amount of fill which had been placed over an earlier stairway, followed by the placement of large blocks forming the treads and risers of the stairway (1-A, 2-A, 3-A, etc.) Modification of this stairway was minor in comparison to the major construction and included the adding of blocks to the existing treads, so that the tread became a riser and the riser became a tread (1-B, 2-B, 3-B, etc.).

Trench C, D.
Excavations of the last construction phase of the building revealed a soil and debitage deposit approximately 2.5 m deep.

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