ABOUT THIS BOOK

The Terminal Classic in the Maya Lowlands revisits one of the great problems in Mayan archaeology - the apparent collapse of Classic Maya civilization from roughly A.D. 830 to 950. During this period the Maya abandoned their power centers in the southern lowlands and rather abruptly ceased the distinctive cultural practices that marked their apogee in the Classic period. Archaeological fieldwork during the past three decades, however, has uncovered enormous regional variability in the ways the Maya experienced the shift from Classic to Postclassic society, revealing a period of cultural change more complex than acknowledged by traditional models.

Featuring an impressive roster of scholars, The Terminal Classic presents the most recent data and interpretations pertaining to this perplexing period of cultural transformation in the Maya lowlands. Although the research reveals clear interregional patterns, the contributors resist a single overarching explanation. Rather, this volume's diverse and nuanced interpretations provide a new, more properly grounded beginning for continued debate on the nature of lowland Terminal Classic Maya civilization.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Arthur A. Demarest is the Ingram Professor of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University.

Prudence M. Rice is Distinguished Professor Emerita in the Department of Anthropology at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. She has authored, edited, or coedited nineteen books.

Don S. Rice is associate dean in the College of Liberal Arts at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.

REVIEWS

"Detailed, comprehensive, and rightly labeled as a 'landmark' publication . . . [The Terminal Classic in the Maya Lowlands] can be favorably compared to Culbert's (1973) volume on the collapse. It will become the new baseline study on this crucial time period. . . . The Terminal Classic in the Maya Lowlands will prove to be an invaluable scholarly resource for not only Maya and Mesoamerican archaeologists but also for anyone intersted in the complexities of cultural devolution and decline."
—American Anthropologist

"... [T]he latest word on the Maya collapse, seen from the perspective of fifty-two well-known and active archaeologists. This is a big book and an important one...The book is significant for at least three reasons. First, the empirical data are important. Second, those data make it clear that no single cause can explain the complicated cultural-historical pattern of collapse, which extended over several centuries and diverse environments. The editors and many of the authors energetically and effectively argue that neither climate change nor ecological collapse can explain the bulk of the data. This volume is a timely and convincing refutation of the environmental explanations, especially drought, for the Maya collapse. Third, and less obviously, this book shows that more and better data do not necessarily resolve themselves into simple patterns."
—Ethnohistory

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents
1. The Terminal Classic and the "Classic Maya Collapse" in Perspective. Prudence M. Rice, Arthur A. Demarest, and Don S. Rice............................................................ 1
2. Hermeneutics, Transitions, and Transformations in Classic to Postclassic Maya Society. Diane Z. Chase, Arlen F. Chase.................................................................. 17
3. Terminal Classic-Period Lowland Ceramics. Prudence M. Rice and Donald Forsyth... 43
4. The Last Hurrah: Continuity and Transformation at Seibal. Gair Tourtellot and Jason J. González ............................................................................................. 78
5. Settlement and Late Classic Political Disintegration in the Petexbatun. Matt O'Mansky and Nicholas P. Dunning................................................................................ 107
6. After the Maelstrom: The Classic Maya Collapse and the Terminal Classic in the Western Peten. Arthur A. Demarest........................................................................ 132
7. Late Classic-to-Postclassic Transformation in the Petén Lakes Region, Guatemala. Prudence M. Rice and Don S. Rice........................................................................... 161
8. Disaster in Sight: The Terminal Classic at Tikal and Uaxactun. Juan Antonio Valdés and Federico Fahsen..................................................................................... 183
9. Defining the Terminal Classic at Calakmul, Campeche. Geoffrey E. Braswell, Joel D. Gunn, María Del Rosario Domínguez Carrasco, William J. Folan, Laraine A. Fletcher, Abel Morales López, And Michael D. Glascock................................................................ 210
10. Terminal Classic Settlement and Polity in the Mopán Valley, Petén, Guatemala. Juan Pedro Laporte................................................................................................ 253
11. Dating Copan Culture History: Implications for the Terminal Classic and the Collapse. David Webster, Anncorinne Freter, and Rebecca Storey...................................... 291
12. Political Decentralization, Dynastic Collapse, and the Early Postclassic in the Urban Center of Copán, Honduras. William L. Fash, E. Wyllys Andrews, and T. Kam Manahan...... 327
13. Out with a whimper: La Milpa in the Terminal Classic. Norman Hammond and Gair Tourtellot............................................................................................. 364
14. Commoner Sense: Late and Terminal Classic Social Strategies in the Xunantunich Area. Wendy Ashmore, Jason Yaeger, and Cynthia Robin.......................................... 379
15. Transformations, Periodicity, and Urban Development in the Three Rivers Region. R.E.W. Adams, H. R. Robichaux, Fred Valdez, Jr., Brett A. Houk, and Ruth Mathews.......... 408
16. Terminal Classic Status-Linked Ceramics and the Maya "Collapse:" De Facto Refuse at Caracol, Belize. Arlen F. Chase and Diane Z. Chase.......................................... 428
17. Maya Cultural Adaptations from the Terminal Classic to Postclassic Period at Lagoon Sites in Northern Belize as Reflected in Changing Ceramic Industries. Marilyn A. Masson and Shirley Boteler Mock.............................................................................. 454
18. Out of Sight: The Postclassic and Early Colonial Periods at Chau Hiix. Christopher R. Andres and K. Anne Pyburn....................................................................... 490
19. High Times in the Hill Country: A Perspective from the Terminal Classic Puuc Region. Kelli Carmean, Nicholas Dunning, and Jeff Karl Kowalski.................................. 516
20. The Rise and Fall of Terminal Classic Yaxuna, Yucatan, Mexico. Charles Suhler, Traci Ardren, David Freidel, Dave Johnstone......................................................... 551
21. The Decline of the East: The Classic-to-Postclassic Transition at Ek Balam, Yucatán. William M. Ringle, George J. Bey III, Tara Bond Freeman, Craig A. Hanson, Charles W. Houck, and J. Gregory Smith..................................................................... 588
22. Chich'en Itza: Settlement and Hegemony during the Terminal Classic Period. Rafael Cobos Palma................................................................................................. 634
23. The Terminal Classic in the Maya Lowlands: Assessing Collapses, Terminations, and Transformations. Arthur A. Demarest, Prudence M. Rice, and Don S. Rice............... 667
References............................................................................................... 710

Library of Congress Subject Headings for this publication: Mayas History, Mayas Politics and government, Mayas Antiquities, Social archaeology Central America, Demographic archaeology Central America, Central America Antiquities

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