Colgate anthropology professor Allan Maca peers into a section of a tomb in Copan, Honduras, that dates back to the 7th century A.D. (Photo by Raul Mejia)
Colgate anthropologist discovers ancient tomb in Honduras
Colgate anthropology professor Allan Maca and a team of researchers have found a previously unknown tomb in Cop?n, Honduras, dating back to the 7th century A.D. that contained the skeleton of an elite member of ancient Maya society in the city.
The unusual characteristics of the tomb?s construction, the human remains, and the artifacts found near the body, according to Maca, paint a picture of an urban state that was more politically complex and culturally diverse than was previously thought.
As reported this month by National Geographic News and the Honduran press, Maca and his group ? which includes Kristin Landau, who graduated this May from Colgate ? discovered the tomb in 2005 in Cop?n, an ancient city near the western edge of Honduras where the country borders Guatemala.
These are some of the artifacts discovered in the tomb by researchers. (Photo by Raul Mejia)
Over the past two years, they have excavated and studied the tomb and its contents, with funding support from the National Geographic Society and Colgate.
While Cop?n, a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Site, is well known for grand, carved and inscribed monuments, a hieroglyphic stairway with the longest text in the Americas, and other famed discoveries in the ceremonial center of the city and its Acropolis, Maca?s team?s find was unexpected because it comes from beyond the administrative heart of Cop?n, in an area that has not yet been well studied.
?Combined with other characteristics, it is becoming clear that this discovery provides unprecedented evidence for political complexity and cultural diversity at Cop?n during the early part of the Late Classic period [A.D. 600 to 750],? said Maca.
Some of the most unusual elements of the find included the positioning or seating of the interred individual, the artifacts found with the body, and design of the tomb itself.
All in all, the discovery provides ?an unusual archaeological context that helps expand our knowledge of the sociopolitical and cultural complexity of the ancient city and of the funerary and ritual landscape of the Cop?n Valley during the seventh century A.D.,? he said.
Dario Euraque, director of the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History, agreed that Maca?s findings were significant.
?Mainly, this is the first tomb to be found outside the principal monuments where all funeral sites are located,? he said.
?We never thought we would find any in the Bosque, which is along the periphery of Cop?n.?
He also believes that the artifacts and tomb characteristics were not representative of the Maya culture.
?This goes against theories that all populations in the Cop?n Valley were uniquely Mayan,? he said. ?There appears to have been a cultural mix.?
The 2005 discovery was announced this month in conjunction with the Honduras Ministry of Culture, Arts, and Sports and the Honduran Institute of Anthropology and History.
Due to its location in an area with poor security, the tomb will be reburied later this summer once consolidation and preliminary restoration have been completed.
Archaeology and Conservation at the UNESCO World Heritage ruins in western Honduras
Copan was an expansive city in the first millenium AD, the center of a regional state, and marked the southeastern extent of the Classic Period Maya florescence. The Project for the Planning of Ancient Copan (PAPAC) is a long term effort to expand our understanding of the urban settlement of Classic Period Copan, for purposes of science and history and for conservation of cultural patrimony. Currently a very small area of the ancient city is owned and actively protected by the Honduran government; in fact only the ceremonial core, or Principal Group, is property of the Nation. More than 75% of all the ancient urban settlement sits on private and municipal lands and therefore is subject to modern development, looting, and the needs of landowners. Should these ruins be destroyed or otherwise compromised, world history will lose vital information not only for one of humanity's most intriguing ancient cultures, but for one of the most spectacular ancient cities ever discovered.
Initiated in 2004, PAPAC seeks to engage this situation primarily from the standpoint of longterm conservation of ruins, focusing on the ancient settlement throughout the Copan alluvial pocket of the Copan Valley. Working closely with the Honduran Institute for Anthropology and History (IHAH), PAPAC directs the first valley-wide mapping effort conducted since the 1970s. This is complemented by strategic excavations at residential and ceremonial complexes that lie outside of the Principal Group (the city center). Excavation sites are chosen based on two criteria: 1) degree to which they are endangered by ongoing looting or development; 2) whether or not they factor into our hypotheses for intentional urban planning in antiquity. Thus, PAPAC tests interpretations for the extent and character of the ancient city while at the same time we document and protect its monuments and advance the anthropological study of Maya cities and their conservation.
PAPAC is also responsible for executing a complete inventory and re-housing of all the human burials discovered at Copan since the late 19th century. The Project also has been actively involved in assisting the Honduran government with plans for the fourfold expansion of the Copan National Archaeological Park, with proposing improvements to park security, and with plans for developing tourist and educational facilities. Moreover, PAPAC works to combine science, history, and conservation with education and public outreach. In cooperation with the IHAH, PAPAC sponsors annual lectures for the public in Copan, engages in the professional training of Honduran college students, and donates supplies to primary schools in local aldeas.
