Takalik Abaj - History

History

Maya civilization
  • People
  • Languages
  • Society
  • Religion
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History
Preclassic Maya
Classic Maya collapse
Spanish conquest of Yucatán
Spanish conquest of Guatemala

The site had a long and continuous settlement history, with the period of principal occupation stretching from the Middle Preclassic down to the Postclassic. The earliest known occupation at Takalik Abaj dates towards the end of the Early Preclassic, ca. 1000 BC. However, it was not until the Middle to Late Preclassic that its first real florescence began with a noted surge in architectural constructions. From this period onwards a continuity of culture and population settlement is in evidence, as represented by the persistence of a local ceramic style (called Ocosito) that remained in use until the Late Classic. The Ocosito style was typically made with red paste and pumice and extended westwards at least as far as Coatepeque, southwards to the Ocosito River and eastwards to the Samalá River. By the Terminal Classic, pottery associated with a highland K'iche' ceramic style had begun to appear intermixed with Ocosito ceramic complex deposits. Ocosito ceramics were replaced entirely by the K'iche' ceramic tradition by the Early Postclassic period.

Approximate occupational timescale of Takalik Abaj
Period Division Dates Summary
Preclassic Early Preclassic 1000–800 BC Diffuse population
Middle Preclassic 800–300 BC Olmec
Late Preclassic 300 BC – AD 200 Early Maya
Classic Early Classic AD 200–600 Teotihuacan-linked conquest
Late Classic Late Classic AD 600–900 Local recovery
Terminal Classic AD 800–900
Postclassic Early Postclassic AD 900–1200 K'iche' occupation
Late Postclassic AD 1200–1524 Abandonment
Note: The period spans used at Takalik Abaj differ slightly from those generally used in the standard chronology applied to the wider Mesoamerican region.

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