School of Anthropology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States of America.
Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala City, Guatemala.
PLoS One. 2019 Aug 30;14(8):e0221943. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0221943. eCollection 2019.
Investigations at the Maya site of Ceibal, Guatemala, documented an artificial plateau, measuring 600 x 340 m in horizontal dimensions and 6 to 15 m in height. Unlike highly visible pyramids, such horizontally extensive constructions covered by the rainforest are difficult to recognize on the ground, but airborne laser scanning (LiDAR) revealed its planned form. Excavations carried out over many years provided data on its construction sequence, fill volumes, and labor investments. The initial construction of the plateau occurred around 950 B.C. when a formal ceremonial complex was built in its center. This was the period when the inhabitants of the Maya lowlands were adopting a new way of life with greater reliance on maize agriculture, full sedentism, and ceramic use. The inhabitants of areas surrounding Ceibal, who retained certain levels of residential mobility, probably participated in the construction of the plateau. In this regard, the Ceibal plateau is comparable to monumental constructions that emerged before or during the transition to agriculture or sedentism in other parts of the world. The data from Ceibal compel researchers to examine the social implications of monumental constructions in the Maya lowlands before the establishment of centralized polities with hereditary rulers. Unlike pyramids, where access to the summits may have been limited to privileged individuals, the horizontal monumentality of the plateau was probably more conducive to inclusive interaction. The Ceibal plateau continued to be built up during the Preclassic period (1000 B.C.-A.D. 175), and its fill volume substantially surpassed those of pyramids. Large-scale construction projects likely promoted organizational and managerial innovations among participants, which may have set the stage for later administrative centralization.
在危地马拉的切伊巴尔玛雅遗址的调查中，记录了一个人工高原，其水平尺寸为 600x340 米，高度为 6 到 15 米。与高度可见的金字塔不同，这些被雨林覆盖的水平延伸的建筑在地面上很难被识别，但航空激光扫描（LiDAR）揭示了它们的规划形式。多年的挖掘提供了其施工顺序、填充量和劳动力投资的数据。高原的最初建设发生在公元前 950 年左右，当时在其中心建造了一个正式的仪式建筑群。这是玛雅低地的居民采用新的生活方式的时期，更加依赖玉米农业、完全定居和陶瓷使用。切伊巴尔周围地区的居民保留了一定程度的居住流动性，可能参与了高原的建设。在这方面，切伊巴尔高原与世界其他地区在向农业或定居生活过渡之前或期间出现的纪念性建筑相当。来自切伊巴尔的数据迫使研究人员在建立有世袭统治者的中央集权政体之前，研究玛雅低地纪念性建筑的社会影响。与金字塔不同，通往山顶的通道可能仅限于特权个人，高原的水平纪念性可能更有利于包容性的互动。在古典前时期（公元前 1000 年至公元 175 年），切伊巴尔高原继续被建造，其填充量大大超过了金字塔。大规模的建设项目可能促进了参与者之间的组织和管理创新，这可能为后来的行政集中化奠定了基础。
