Middle Preclassic Interregional Interaction and the Maya Lowlands

Abstract

The lowland Mayas are seldom mentioned in discussions of early Mesoamerican interactions, which commonly focus on the Gulf coast Olmecs. But such connections are evidenced by the occurrence of anthropomorphic fired-clay figurines and other artifacts (including obsidian, greenstone, bark beaters, and shell), reviewed herein. Figurines co-occur with a distinctive architectural complex in the southern lowlands but are absent in the north; other artifacts are variably present north–south and east–west. These goods relate to the development of societal complexity and cosmopolitical power, and helped support the roles of nascent elites, particularly in linkages with ancestors. Their variable distributions suggest that the lowland Mayas participated, but selectively, in early interaction spheres.