C
Puebla–Tlaxcala basin
Cacaxtla (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Painted buildings and excavated objects document elite displays and varied regional connections. Museum interpretation helps distinguish original murals, modern copies and objects from separate archaeological contexts.
Painted architecture and regional-power context
Principal Epiclassic contexts approximately 650–950 CE; neighboring Formative contexts kept separate
Painted architecture, ceramics, ritual figures and excavation or conservation histories.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Nativitas public town orientation, Tlaxcala. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
C
Central Maya lowlands
Calakmul (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Monumental inscriptions, reservoirs, modified landscapes and linked settlements show political power supported by substantial work. Calakmul's dynastic history is one part of a diverse lowland world, not a uniform Maya empire.
Classic political and managed-landscape context
Approximately mid-first millennium BCE–1000 CE; Late Classic dynastic prominence distinguished
Stelae, architecture, roads, reservoirs, landscape modifications and comparative dynastic inscriptions.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Xpujil public town orientation, Campeche, distant from the protected archaeological core. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
C
Cuenca de Oriental
Cantona (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Residential compounds, circulation routes, ballcourts and obsidian production reveal a worked urban landscape. Competing chronologies make Cantona a useful case for explaining sampling and context rather than presenting one unquestioned peak date.
Urban settlement and dating context
Formative through Classic/Epiclassic contexts; published phases and radiocarbon models differ
Settlement survey, architecture, obsidian production and context-assessed radiocarbon determinations.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Tepeyahualco public town orientation, Puebla. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
C
Central Mexican highlands
Chalcatzingo (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Terraces, residential settings and carved reliefs connect local highland communities with wider Formative networks. The return of Monument 9 adds a documented history of looting, recovery and local heritage care.
Formative landscape and exchange context
Approximately 1500–350 BCE, with principal Middle Formative contexts
Terraces, residential architecture, carved reliefs and documented repatriation.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Chalcatzingo public town orientation, Morelos. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
C
Northern Yucatán
Chichén Itzá (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Water features, public buildings and distinct architectural programs reveal changing connections within and beyond Yucatán. The relationship with Tula is an interpretive problem, not a settled migration map.
Urban and contested-interaction context
Classic through Postclassic contexts; principal monumental developments in the later first and early second millennia CE
Architectural sequences, sculpture, inscriptions and comparative archaeological interpretation.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Pisté public town orientation, Yucatán. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
C
Puebla–Tlaxcala valley
Cholula (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Successive monumental construction, ceramics and murals sit within a still-inhabited landscape. Cholula connects long urban histories with unequal colonial encounters without making one temple represent the whole population.
Long-lived urban and living-heritage context
Approximately 650 BCE–1600 CE, with earlier occupation indications and distinct colonial transformations
Superimposed architecture, ceramics, murals and histories of excavation and museum interpretation.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- San Pedro Cholula public town orientation, Puebla. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
C
Copán Valley
Copán (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Monuments, public spaces and a long inscriptional program illuminate a changing valley polity. Reconstruction history and local conservation work are essential to understanding what survives and what remains uncertain.
Classic polity and epigraphic-conservation context
Principal Classic dynastic context approximately 426–822 CE; earlier and later valley histories distinct
Architecture, carved inscriptions, displaced stairway blocks and archaeological conservation.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Copán Ruinas public town orientation. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
C
Basin of Mexico
Cuicuilco (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
A circular monumental base and a broader settlement landscape connect ritual, daily life and basin environments. Volcanic deposits matter, but they do not provide a complete explanation for every regional demographic change.
Settlement and environmental-change context
Main Preclassic development from approximately 800 BCE into the early centuries CE; Xitle chronology caveated
Architecture, ceramics, tools, volcanic coverage and museum interpretation.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Tlalpan public district orientation, Mexico City. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
E
Northern Gulf Coast
El Tajín (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Plazas, terraces, ballcourts and carved reliefs document a major Gulf center. Architecture and conservation evidence offer a view of ritual and skilled work without assigning every resident one language or living identity.
Urban and architectural context
Main monumental contexts approximately seventh–thirteenth centuries CE; source chronologies differ
Urban layout, reliefs, mural fragments, construction phases and conservation records.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Papantla public town orientation, Veracruz. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
J
Zapotitán Valley
Joya de Cerén (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Ash-preserved buildings, stores, food remains and tools illuminate everyday village work. This context balances monumental cities with household evidence while keeping eruption, excavation and heritage timelines separate.
Farming village and preservation context
Approximately sixth–seventh centuries CE; eruption chronology and later research distinguished
Preserved architecture, storage areas, food and plant remains, tools and stratified volcanic deposits.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- San Juan Opico public town orientation, La Libertad. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
K
Guatemalan highlands
Kaminaljuyú (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Earthen buildings, water-related infrastructure and highland connections reveal a major urban sequence. Present-day ceremonial use and conservation histories require a distinction between ancient evidence and living authority.
Highland urban and living-heritage context
Approximately 1100–1000 BCE onward, with Late Preclassic prominence and later Classic transformations
Earthen architecture, irrigation-related remains, ceramics and institutional histories of surviving urban sectors.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Guatemala City public urban orientation, away from specific mounds or ceremonial spaces. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
L
Gulf Coast lowlands
La Venta (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Earth-built platforms, carved stone and deposited greenstone show organized work and ritual at a Gulf Coast center. La Venta provides one local sequence, not the origin story of every Mesoamerican community.
Formative settlement and monument context
Approximately 1200–400 BCE; local construction phases distinguished
Architectural phases, sculptural contexts, offerings and museum documentation.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Villa La Venta public town orientation, Tabasco. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
M
Valley of Tlacolula
Mitla/Lyobáa (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Stone mosaics, patios and traces of painted surfaces reveal skilled architectural work within a long-inhabited valley. Mitla is also a living community, not an abandoned civilization or a template for every Zapotec government.
Architecture and living-heritage context
Approximately 200 CE–1600 CE; Late Postclassic monumental prominence and colonial change distinguished
Architecture, assembled stone mosaics, surviving paint and institutional site research.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- San Pablo Villa de Mitla public town orientation, Oaxaca. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
P
Usumacinta-connected western lowlands
Palenque (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Palaces, temples, reliefs and residential areas show an inhabited political center with varied kinds of work. Museum history adds the modern interpretation of excavated evidence without reproducing burial or human-remains imagery.
Classic city and inscriptional context
Late Preclassic through approximately ninth century CE; principal Classic monumental contexts
Architecture, sculpted and written programs, residential areas and excavated museum objects.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Palenque public town orientation, Chiapas. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
Q
Motagua Valley
Quiriguá (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Carved monuments and remodeled public spaces illuminate a local polity's changing relationships. Accounts of a royal defeat must be read critically rather than expanded into a certain narrative of warfare or ethnic liberation.
Classic polity and inscriptional context
Approximately 200–900 CE, with principal eighth-century monumental programs
Dated sculpture, inscriptions, architecture and comparative epigraphic research.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Los Amates public town orientation, Izabal. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
T
Pacific piedmont
Tak’alik Ab’aj (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Diverse sculpture, water systems and reused monuments show locally shaped encounters across Pacific foothill networks. Current sacred use requires respect rather than treating the place as an empty archaeological stage.
Formative-to-Classic exchange and living-sacred context
Approximately 800 BCE–900 CE, with living sacred use and modern heritage history distinguished
Sculpture reuse, urban layout, water works, ceramics and institutional research histories.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- El Asintal public town orientation, Retalhuleu. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
T
Northern Basin connections
Tula/Tollan Xicocotitlan (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Monumental plazas, workshops and residential evidence connect Tula with changing highland networks. Later royal traditions cannot substitute for the archaeological histories of Tula Chico and Tula Grande.
Urban and transmitted-tradition context
Approximately seventh–twelfth centuries CE for principal urban developments; later reuse distinguished
Urban architecture, excavated craft material, households and museum research histories.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Tula de Allende public town orientation, Hidalgo. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
T
Lake Pátzcuaro basin
Tzintzuntzan (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
The lake-basin center combined royal, ritual and productive roles. Yácatas and museum collections reveal political differentiation and skilled work without making the whole Purépecha world a homogeneous nation-state.
Late Postclassic political and living-heritage context
Approximately thirteenth–sixteenth centuries CE; early colonial reorganization distinguished
Architectural complexes, excavated craft material, institutional interpretation and contextualized colonial testimony.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Tzintzuntzan public town orientation, Michoacán. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
U
Puuc hills
Uxmal (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Stone mosaics, reservoirs and rainwater storage link public architecture with everyday survival. Uxmal's regional prominence depended on skilled work and local landscapes rather than one timeless Maya state.
Urban water-management and architectural context
Earlier occupation with principal monumental development approximately 750–1000 CE
Architectural phases, fitted stone decoration, water-storage works and excavated domestic objects.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Santa Elena public town orientation, Yucatán. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Mayan-language or writing context; not a uniform spoken population
X
Morelos highlands
Xochicalco (site or historical name, not a self-designation for every ancient or living resident)
Built hills, carved programs and domestic objects connect Xochicalco with changing regional networks after Teotihuacan's decline. Monumental imagery and household reconstructions reveal different, partial aspects of the city.
Epiclassic urban and exchange context
Principal Epiclassic development approximately 650–900 CE; broader site sequence distinguished
Terraced architecture, carved inscriptions and reliefs, ceramics and excavated domestic objects.
- Reference town or archaeological context
- Miacatlán public town orientation, Morelos. Approximate public orientation only, never a territorial, ethnic, linguistic, political, cultural or sovereignty boundary. Not a burial, ancestral-remains, restricted sacred-site or private deposit location; no access, excavation or collecting permission is implied.
- Language family
- Evidence-specific language context; no uniform assignment
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