Methods and Results, 1998
Basically, we attempted this season to follow the faces that
had been exposed to determine the dimensions of N12-12 and ultimately
its construction history and relationship to church architecture.
The faces are those of a platform that supported a superstructure
at one time; the absence of wall masonry indicates that the superstructure
was probably of wood. The platform was thought at first to be
a single building event, but our excavations demonstrate that
at least two and perhaps more phases are in evidence.
Based on the research Graham (1998)
has carried out on missions in the New World, the Belize missions
seem to have followed the early medieval pattern in which churches
have their altar ends facing east, and in which the rectory is
placed just north of the church near the sanctuary end. At both
Negroman-Tipu (Graham 1991) and Lamanai (at least in the case
of YDL II), buildings were placed north of the church at the
sanctuary end, and appear to have abutted the church wall. For
this reason, we nicknamed Str. N12-12 "The Rectory."
We were successful in clearing the face
and basal moulding on the south side, and about half of the face
on the west side. The basal moulding continued around the south
side to the west, but a tree that stands midway between the NW
and SW corners on the west side has buckled much of the face,
leaving collapse in its wake. There was clearly some sort of
addition to the platform on the west side (see LA 1116 below)
because three huge stones in alignment mark a construction event.
The stones are most likely to be part of a face of some sort,
perhaps the face of a platform addition or even, possibly, the
outset of a stair (in Pendergast's 1983 Fieldnotes, Appendix
I of this report, he interprets this feature as a stair). Unfortunately
the main access road through the Lamanai Reserve crosses the
west end of N12-12, and in order to discover more about the addition
on this side we will have to shift the road. For the time being
we have given the name of "Eria" to this addition,
and, like Pendergast, we are using "Gann" to refer
to the platform itself, but especially to the platform as it
was faced with cut limestone and a basal moulding.
We began where Pendergast had revealed
the first course of a probable platform face at the north end
of the test trench and we followed this course westward to reveal
a substantial north face. The style of construction on this side
is, however, very different from that on the south side. The
stones on the south are cut and shaped, and a basal moulding
is in evidence. On the north the stones are crudely shaped (if
shaped at all), stood on end, and larger than those of the south
face. We tried to follow the face to the NW corner, but we found
that a huge tree had dislodged most of the construction on this
side. Random-sized stones packed tightly along the facing stones
still standing provided evidence, however, that the platform
had indeed been added to on this (the north) side (see LA 1117
below). Excavations terminated for the season before we reached
the proposed NW corner.
On the east side, only a small portion
of the face was revealed, and it exhibits a basal moulding. We
do not yet know how this face conjoins the others, or whether
it relates to them at all. The sanctuary walls of YDL II seem
to have been placed over the original line of the south face
of N12-12, so that the south face must have been destroyed on
this end when YDL II was built. To complicate matters, further
excavation of the footings of YDL II suggest that the church
was not built, as we thought at first, over the basal moulding
stones of N12-12, but instead over stones that were part of yet
another structure or structural phase - one that postdated "Gann"
but predated the church. Further possible evidence for such a
structure, or one like it, was found north of YDL II in the form
of an alignment of stones (see sketch).
Summary
Although we have not yet been able to connect all excavated structural
portions of N12-12, our excavations have shown that N12-12 represents
a far more complex series of events than originally anticipated.
N12-12 may have originally been built in Late Postclassic times
and then used and added to in Historic times. Its Historic-period
use may be represented by more than one construction event, however.
We hope that continued excavations in 1999 will bring us closer
to sorting out the construction history of N12-12.
Lot numbers assigned to N12-12; lots
in parentheses refer to equivalent lots assigned by Pendergast
in the 1983 excavations:
LA 1100
PAA (post-abandonment accumulation) and collapse debris from
the south side of N12-12, along the platform face of "Gann,"
the nickname given to this construction phase.
LA 1101 (LA 786)
PAA, collapse debris, clearing the west side of N12-12, Gann.
LA 1102
Clearing the platform face on the east side of N12-12; not certain
here that the platform is Gann; it's possible it is a different
construction event, although as it was cleared, a basal moulding
that matches that encountered on the south face was revealed.
Contexts are PAA and collapse, but possibly midden-1 as well.
LA 1116 (LA 777)
Clearing along the west face of Gann but on the north side of
an apparent addition to Gann. So far we only have the north face
of the addition (see sketch), which we have nicknamed "Eria,"
and which was probably a low platform that supported a perishable
superstructure of some sort -- perhaps a kitchen building. Or,
it may have been part of a stair feature (an outset?). No south
face of Eria was encountered, but there is still more earth to
clear along the west face of Gann in 1999. Eria's north face
so far comprises three large, uncut stones, and architecturally
does not match the Gann platform face. Unfortunately we may find
that "Eria" was destroyed by road construction, but
the small cut we made westward into the roadbed suggested that
much of Eria remained intact. LA 1116 is PAA, collapse, and core.
LA 1117 (LA 763,764)
Clearing along the north face of Gann. The north face was first
identified by Pendergast in 1983 as a "single alignment
of stones" encountered at the north side of the test trench
dug through the assumed mid-line of Gann. We started at this
alignment and continued to follow it westward. We hoped to follow
it to the northwest corner, but the presence of roots from a
trumpet tree slowed progress. We cut the tree down, but it took
most of the rest of the excavation time to clear the roots and
move past this disturbed root zone where, by the end of the season,
no facing stones were yet encountered. However, it may be that
the corner is inset, and we have hopes of clarifying the situation
in 1999. Indications are that what we dug through to clear the
north face was probably construction core of an addition to the
platform on this side. We could not be certain at first because
it also appeared to be collapse. However, Pendergast suspected
that this was possible construction core in 1983. At that time
he described the stones in this zone as a "rock assemblage"
and used the nickname "Pox" to refer to the deposit
on this side (see Appendix I, this report). We will retain this
designation, especially since we discovered through excavation
that stones were packed tightly along the Gann face here, indicating
that they were not collapse but rather the result of a construction
effort. In 1999 we will look closely for remains of a face for
"Pox," but disturbance in this zone is considerable
(collapse, Gann's excavations, and root action).
Ceramics and other artifacts recovered
to date
The bulk of the material from the 1983
excavations is Late Postclassic, and sherds from Mayapan-style
local censers are in evidence, especially on the north and west
sides. Unfortunately, the soil on the south and west sides is
extremely disturbed; adjacent to YDL II (west of the church sanctuary,
south of N12-12) there appears to have been a large pit dug and
filled in modern times. Partly filled with church plaster, it
may represent mid-19th century sugarmill-related activity. The
west side of N12-12 has been disturbed by road construction.
Only the north and east sides so far seem to be undisturbed by
modern construction events. Excavating outside (north of) the
face on the north side reveals that "Pox" may well
be the core of a platform addition on that side (see above).
If so, then the censer fragments on that side derive from the
core of the addition. The olive jar sherds recovered by Pendergast
on the north side may also be part of the core, which would date
the addition to Historic times; or, they were scattered about
the surface of the platform addition in Historic times and filtered
through to core following abandonment and collapse.
Sherds from periods earlier than Late
Postclassic times are represented; most of these are Terminal
Classic in date, although Preclassic sherds also occur, mainly
on the south (most highly disturbed) side, as do 19th century
glass bottles and other modern artifacts. Chert flakes and debitage
are fairly abundant, but no contexts are primary, so they, too,
come from different time periods. If primary contexts exist (i.e.,
midden or occupational debris) they are most likely to be encountered
on the north or east sides. Pendergast describes the east side
as an area where midden debris was found to occur in 1983, and
olive jar fragments were recovered from the north side. The crocodile
effigy (Cache N12-12/1; LA 757) found cached in the core of the
platform in the area of the mid-line trench suggests a rather
late date of construction (Terminal Postclassic or Historic)
for the bulk of N12-12, but nothing will be certain until the
entire construction history has been elucidated.
REFERENCES CITED
Graham, Elizabeth
1998 Mission Archaeology. Annual Review of Anthropology, Volume
27:25-62.*
1991 Archaeological Insights into Colonial
Period Maya Life at Tipu, Belize. In Columbian Consequences,
Volume 3: The Spanish Borderlands in Pan-American Perspective,
edited by David Hurst Thomas, pp. 319-335. Smithsonian Institution
Press, Washington, D.C.
APPENDIX I:
Fieldnotes, Lamanai Structure N12-12, 1983.
Comments:
These are the fieldnotes recorded by Pendergast in 1983 when
Str. N12-12 was first investigated.
The only editing has been to standardize terminology used in
1998 and 1983. See the lot assignments in the 1998 report for
notes on the coordination of the 1983 and 1998 contexts.
Fieldnotes 1983
Trench at N. reveals collapse debris, apparently capping (or
mixed with) sherds that include olive jar fragments. No clear
N. face to parallel the S. platform face. Trench across structure
(N-S) sections the area disturbed by Gann's excavations plus
uppermost core unit. At the N. side, S of a single alignment
of stones (possible basal moulding?), depth ca 30-35 cm, scattered
in core, is Cache N12-12/1 (LA-757), a single crocodile vessel.
[Illustration to be provided]
Checking of the SE portion of the structure
shows that the basal moulding on this face, similar to the one
mentioned above, runs under the YDL II wall; hence demolition
of the "Gann" portion of the structure (the outermost
unit of construction identifiable) is likely to have preceded
construction of YDL II. That destruction of a stair at the S
occurred as a result of church construction is possible but unlikely,
given the location of the church relative to N12-12.
The N-S trench is approximately on the
primary axis, but partly in the area of Gann's excavations. Cache
N12-12/1 seems contemporary with the core in which it lay because
it was spread among the stones, but the possibility exists that
it was intrusive. The upper core of the structure (above the
level of the basal moulding and interior [core?] face at the
N) is LA-758; sherds from the core of the platform are LA-759.
A major portion of an olive jar, LA
742/1, lay on bedrock at approximately the N limit of the axial
trench. LA 763/1 is a concentration of olive jar sherds atop
a rock assemblage exterior to the N face of the structure and
W of the axial trench (see plan), dia. ca 15-20 cm; probably
atop the surface of a platform on which Gann rests. The rock
assemblage is apparently outside this structure, but the structure
limit at the N is not yet clearly definable. The rock mass ("Pox")
has the appearance of core, but cannot be related to a unit secondary
to Gann because neither form nor facings for such a unit are
evident. The trench was extended northward to check for refuse
at the limit of the possible platform underlying Gann; additional
LA 763 olive jar fragments were scattered ca 6 metres N of the
area of the first lot (LA 763/1), which was ca 2 metres N of
the possible basal moulding of the N face of Gann. Further olive
jar lay atop a rock spread that extends N from the W portion
of Gann, and also at the E limit of the rocks. The significance
of the rocks remains unclear; the possibility at first appeared
to exist that the material represented Gann's backdirt, but the
fact that the assemblage lay directly atop bedrock ruled out
this identification. LA 763/2 is a celt on the surface near the
S limit of the rock assemblage. N of Gann (see plan) was a hole
cut from near ground surface into sascab, with 1 tapir (?) bone
at a depth of 21 cm within it. The hole was filled above the
bone with sascab fragments and soil, with a slight amount of
ash (?) beneath the bone.
Upper core of Gann consisted of small
stones at the N and larger stones plus soil at the S, probably
task units rather than evidence of a construction sequence. The
southern core overlay a mortar layer; sherds from the platform
N of the possible basal moulding of the Gann N face were separated
as LA-761. Below the line of facing stones at the N is another
alignment; excavation was continued atop the latter line, under
the mortar layer. Sherds from this unit are LA-762.
Excavation sectioned the W stair, marked
by two high riser stones; the stair proved to be secondary to
the platform face, which leaves no clear evidence of a primary
Gann stair. As sherds from lower Gann core (LA-759) include middle
Postclassic material, the date of the W stair must be Late Postclassic.
Sherds from core of the W stair (LA-785) are few, and include
Postclassic and earlier material. No cache was encountered in
the stair. Excavation of Gann was closed 24/5/83.
Lots from N12-12:
LA-757
Cache N12-12/1 (crocodile vessel)
LA-758&759
Sherds &c from Gann core above the mortar layer (section
trench)
LA-761
Sherds &c from platform core at N side of Gann
LA-762
Sherds from below the mortar layer, section trench from N limit
of Gann.
LA-763&764
Sherds &c from surface of rock assemblage ("Pox")
W of centre trench, at N face of Gann
LA-765
Radiocarbon sample in base clay under core of Gann; not clearly
in situ burning, but may precede construction; extended N-S from
approximate centre of structure to ca 40 cm N of the centre;
sealed by the mortar layer, 54-60 cm above.
LA-777
Sherds &c from sides of W stair
LA-785
Core, of W stair
LA-786
Surface, W side of Gann, outside of vertical stone alignment
Comments:
The lone evidence of a possible sequence of construction in Gann
appears to be the lower alignment of stones encountered below
the putative "basal moulding" at the N face of the
structure. Ripdown of portions of Gann prior to construction
of YDL II is a virtual certainty, and demolition to clear the
way for the second church is highly likely. There is nothing
specific, however, to support a circa 1600 date (the presumed
time of construction of YDL II) for the demolition. If Cache
N12-12/1 is indeed contemporaneous with Gann there is a possibility
that Gann was built in the Historic period, and there is nothing
in core-content or other data to refute the suggestion. The olive
jar fragments concentrated at the N side of the structure appeared
to lie entirely outside the platform face, and the rock mass
atop and around which they lay was certainly some sort of purposive
assemblage, laid directly on bedrock. There is a fair likelihood
that the rocks were laid up in Historic times, but the function
of the assemblage is anything but clear. Not mentioned in the
fieldnotes, but cleared in the last stage of excavation, is a
unit secondary to the N12-12 platform, and runs perpendicular
to it westward for an undetermined distance. Further excavation
along and within the unit would be warranted, as would checking
of all of the area N of the platform face that was not examined
in 1983. The east face of the platform should be cleared at least
to the SE corner of Gann, and the relationship between the structure
and YDL II should be re-examined.
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