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The Eastern Riverine Corridor During the Late Classic Period
Endnotes
- In addition to affiliations with the Belize River valley and northeastern Belize, Walker (1990) has also noted a clear Yucatecan influence on the Cerros ceramic assemblage (at the mouth of the New River). This influence is present in the Preclassic and Early Classic assemblages and markedly prominent during the Late Classic, when the site was briefly reoccupied. An especially strong association has been found between Cerros and Becán during the Protoclassic and is characterized by the presence of Zapatista Trickle, a predominantly Yucatecan type (Reese-Taylor and Walker 2002b; Walker 2000).
- While the earliest dates recovered thus far suggest an initial occupation at about 400 B.C. (Sullivan 2002:200), research continues in northwestern Belize and it is possible that earlier sites may be located.
- Gyles Iannone first noted the remarkable similarities between the E-groups at both Minanha and Caracol, and specifically the slate stela in the mid-line of the eastern structures (Iannone 1999:104).
- According to Martin and Grube (2000:109), this stela is attributed to Yuknoom the Great; though they also note that it is one of the pieces of evidence that points to joint reign with his son during his later years, as the portrait of Yuknoom Yich’aak K’ak graces the front face of Stela 9.
- During his reign, Yuknoom the Great counted among his allies and vassals the lords of El Perú, Cancuén, Dos Pilas, Piedras Negras, Naranjo, Caracol, and Moral.
- While the exact meaning denoted by the distribution of E-groups during the Classic period remains unclear, there is little doubt that a very significant relationship among Calakmul, Caracol, and Minanha was signaled by the parallel placement of slate stelae within these particular architectural arrangements. Stela 9 at Calakmul was dedicated first (A.D. 662), and Stela 21 from Caracol was dedicated in A.D. 702, some 40 years later (Beetz and Satterthwaite 1981). The dedication date of the Minanha stela is unknown. Despite the differences in dedication dates, the three slate stelae symbolically cross reference each other, and hence would have served as important visual reminders of the power and influence that the three allies enjoyed during the reign of Yuknoom the Great.
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