Marco Gonzales Maya Site on Southern Ambergris Caye Belize

1 - Conch midden immediately west of the beach road -- piles of conch shells eaten by the Maya, the shells with characteristic round holes. You can collect here. No structures.
2 - Boca Ciega site. Probably the same age as Marco Gonzalez or slightly younger. Much of the site is buried beneath swamp and more modern refuse. No structures.
3 - At a small turnoff along the beach road by the sewage treatment plant. Chert tools and pottery sherds abundant, and some opened conch shells. No structures.
4, 7, and 9 - Un-named -- Bedrock highs on which Maya artifacts are present, including pottery sherds and some chert tools. No structures. Number 9 surrounded by dense jungle.
5 - San Pablo site. Along the road as you enter San Pablo Town from the beach road. A newly-bulldozed area of "black dirt" (anthrosol) with abundant pottery sherds, chert tools, and opened conch shells. Foundations of some structures (limestone slabs) visible.
6 - Un-named. On the road directly south of Sweet Basil restaurant. An area of "black dirt" (anthrosol) with pottery sherds and chert tools.
8 - Un-named -- In shallow water (1 ft) at the point of land. Pottery sherds and chert tools.
10 - Un-named -- on the eastern and western shores of the northern part of Blackadore Cave. Pottery sherds present locally.
11 - Santa Cruz Site. A short walk into thejungle. Limestone slab foundations, pottery sherds, and chert tools. Where the Maya used to burn limestone to make plaster.
12 - San Juan Site. On the northern tip of the San Juan Peninsula, the current location of the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve research facility. Abundant pottery and chert.
13 - Chac Balam Site. The subject of the fictional action-suspense novel being written by S. J. Mazzullo.

SELECTED REFERENCES

Dunn, R.K., and Mazzullo, S.J., 1993, Holocene paleocoastal reconstruction and its relationship to Marco Gonzalez, Ambergris Caye, Belize; Journal of Field Archaeology, v. 20, p. 121-131.

Graham, E., and Pendergast, D.M., 1987, Cays to the kingdom; Archaeological Newsletter of the Royal Ontario Museum, II, v. 18, p. 1-4.

Graham, E., and Pendergast, D.M., 1989, Excavations at the Marco Gonzalez Site, Ambergris Cay, Belize, 1986; Journal of Field Archaeology, v. 16, p. 1-16.

Pendergast, D.M., and Graham, E., 1987, No site too small: The ROM's Marco Gonzalez Excavations in Belize; Rotunda, v. 20, p. 34-40.

Pendergast, D.M., and Graham, E., 1990, An island paradise(??): Marco Gonzalez 1990; Archaeological Newsletter of the Royal Ontario Museum, II, v. 41, p. 1-4.

For the Royal Ontario Museum website, click here for information on digs in Marco Gonzales and on Ambergris Caye. David Pendergast, who is now the director of the Museum, was in charge of excavations at Lamanai and Altun Ha in the 70's & 80's, and the Museum also sponsored work at Ambergris Caye and in Cuba. They have quite a nice website. For their section on archaeology in the rest of the country of Belize, Click here.

Marco Gonzales Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
THE MARCO GONZALEZ MAYA SITE ON SOUTHERN AMBERGRIS CAYE
by Dr. S. J. Mazzullo, Department of Geology, Wichita State University, Wichita, Kansas

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