The Classic period of Belizean, Maya, and Mesoamerican history began with the advent of Mayan monumental inscriptions in AD 250, and ended with the decline of these inscriptions during the Classic Maya Collapse in AD 900.

Geography During the pre-Columbian era, Belize formed part of the Maya Lowlands of the Maya Region of Mesoamerica. Traditionally, the first-order subdivisions of the latter follow cultural or political boundaries of Preclassic, Classic, or Postclassic civilisations, e.g. Mayas and Aztecs. The Maya region of Mesoamerica is one such. It, in turn, is further subdivided physiographically into at least three regions, i.e. the Maya Lowlands, Highlands, and Pacific. The first of these second-order subdivisions, which fully encompassed Belize, is still further subdivided into northern, central, and southern portions, called the Northern, Central, and Southern Lowlands. Belizean territory north of Indian Creek i.e. Nim Li Punit is often included within the Central Lowlands, fully encompassing five of Belize's districts, and an upper portion of Toledo. Territory south of Indian Creek, including Nim Li Punit, is often placed within the Southern Lowlands, encompassing the central and lower portions of Toledo.

History Early Fall of El Mirador The onset of the Classic period in the Lowlands saw the completion of the fall and abandonment of El Mirador, which had begun in the Terminal Preclassic. Having been the pre-eminent power across the central Lowlands during the Preclassic, its collapse is thought to have been felt across this sphere of influence, possibly leading to political, economic, or social distress in previously subordinate centres, and certainly creating a power vacuum in the central Lowlands.

Rise of Tikal Tikal, and to a lesser extent various other Lowland states, promptly rose to prominence upon El Mirador's demise, with the former becoming 'the largest Classic city of the Peten region and among the largest of all Maya sites.' Significantly, Tikal Stela 29, likely installed by Foliated Jaguar circa 8.12.14.8.15 (i.e. 6 July 292 Greg), is deemed a 'hallmark' or 'the best evidence of Tikal's emergence as the capital of an independent polity,' as it portrays the king donning various important regnal symbols, most notably a double-headed serpent bar and the capital's emblem glyph.

Teotihuacan influence From at least circa 300, Teotihuacan is thought to have begun exerting cultural, commercial, and perhaps even political influence over Tikal and the surrounding Lowlands. Their influence seems to have especially increased after 8.17.1.4.12 (i.e. 14 January 378 Greg), the day when Siyaj K'ak' of Teotihuacan is thought to have conquered Tikal. Post-conquest Tikal would then embark on a successful expansionist programme of military conquest and strategic royal marriages 'that would see it become the dominant power in the central Lowlands.' The 411–456 reign of Siyaj Chan K'awiil of Tikal would apparently mark both the apogee of that city's hegemony, and the complete synthesis of local and foreign traditions.

Hiatus The late Early Classic Hiatus was a stretch of sixty years in 534593 i.e. 9.5.0.0.09.8.0.0.0 'when few dated monuments were erected' in cities across the Central Lowlands, but most especially in Tikal, which had entered 'a time of decline and dynastic turmoil.' In particular, the 562 fall of Tikal to a Calakmul-Caracol alliance is thought to have 'plunged much of the central Lowlands into a series of wars,' thereby upsetting 'the established Lowland order' and ushering in 'a whole new era in the political development of the Maya Lowlands.'

Late The Late Classic is traditionally deemed the 'apogee' of Maya civilisation.

Rise and fall of Calakmul The power vacuum left by Tikal's conquest was swiftly filled by Calakmul, judging from extant records of their alliances and military victories scattered 'throughout the Lowlands.' The 636–686 reign of Yuknoom the Great marked the apogee of Calakmul's power. This would nevertheless be brought to an end by Jasaw Chan K'awiil I of Tikal, whose 695 conquest of Calakmul sought to restore Tikal to its former pre-eminence. This restorative programme would be completed by K'awiil I's successor, Yik'in Chan K'awiil, via a series of successful military manoeuvres in 736–744, thereby inaugurating 'the most successful k'atun in Tikal's history.'

Terminal The Terminal Classic saw the demise of 'almost all' states in the central and southern Lowlands, even as polities in the northern reaches 'continued to prosper.'

Demographics Classes Classic Maya societies are known to have been stratified into at least two classes, i.e. the elite and common ones, with 'somewhat fluid' distinctions between these defined by descent, occupation, wealth, and accomplishments, among other factors. Most notably, elite status was typically signalled by wealth, privilege, and supernatural associations, though an emerging non-elite middle class may have later detracted from wealth as a status-marker.

Elite The elite class constituted a small minority of the population, but have historically been the focus of Mayanist scholarship. By at least the Late Classic, the elite class are thought to have been 'internally ranked by differences in status, wealth, and power.'

Non-elite The non-elite class constituted 'the vast majority of the population.' Despite this, they are 'not even mentioned' in Classic Mayan texts, and until the 2000s were heavily understudied by archaeologists. Archaeological findings suggest that by the Late Classic the non-elite class were considerably stratified via the emergence of a commercially prosperous 'middle class.'

Population Average population densities of Classic Maya cities have been estimated at 1,554 people per square mile (600 per square kilometre). Additionally, settlement studies have yielded surprisingly high mean population densities for the rural central Lowlands. Late Classic estimates for the upper Belize River Valley (surrounding Xunantunich) range from 881 to 1,360 inhabitants per square mile (340–525 per square kilometre), while those for the Paten central lakes area (surrounding Tikal) are about 518 per square mile (200 per square kilometre). The Late Classic urban-cum-rural population of the central Lowlands is thereby estimated 'in the tens of millions of people,' and thought to have constituted 'one of the world's most densely populated preindustrial societies.' The Late Classic, in particular, is thought to have marked the peak of Maya population in the Lowlands.

Technology Astronomy

Classic Maya astronomy has been likened to that of the Babylonian civilisation, as contrasted with that of the likes of Kepler and Copernicus. In particular, stars, moons, and planets were thought to embody deities, and their observation was believed to aid in prophesying.

Celestial bodies studied The sun, moon, Venus, and the North Star are known to have been heavily studied in the Classic period. There is some evidence to suggest that Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn may also have been studied or observed.

+ Assigned and actual periods or revolutions of various celestial bodies studied by Classic Mayas in Belize. Body Assigned Period Actual Period Unit Notes Sun 365.0000 365.2422 solar days discrepancy noticed but not corrected Moon 29.53020 29.53059 solar days discrepancy possibly unnoticed Venus 584.00 583.92 solar days discrepancy noticed and corrected Mars c × 78 780 solar days possibly; where c = an integral constant Jupiter – – solar days possibly

Instruments and practice Classic Maya astronomers employed 'long sight lines and horizontal markers that allowed accuracy to within less than a day in fixing the synodical or apparent revolution of many celestial bodies.' Their naked-eye observatories are thought to have been placed atop elevated hills or buildings, with celestial movements noted with reference to some fixed feature on the horizon. For instance, Copan Stela 10 (on an eastern hilltop) is thought to have formed part of an east–west sight line, with Stela 12 employed as the corresponding fixed feature on the western horizon, as these align with annual sunsets on 12 April. Similarly, the notable E Groups in various Classic sites (first discovered in Uaxactun) are thought to have each formed three east–west sight lines possibly used 'to mark the positions of equinoxes and solstices' (via solar alignment on 21 March, 21 June, 23 September, and 21 December).

Time-keeping

Classic Maya time-keeping has been described as 'a sophisticated system of arithmetic and a series of complex calendars' producing 'endless cycles of time' which were employed by aristicratic and priestly classes for 'both mystical and practical purposes.'

Units The basic calendrical unit employed was the k'in i.e. the solar day. These were progressively composed, usually in vigesimal steps, into further calendrical units as follows.

+ Calendrical units of Classic Maya time-keeping in Belize. Unit Unit Days 1 k'in – 1 20 k'in 1 winal 20 18 winal 1 tun 360 20 tun 1 k'atun 7,200 20 k'atun 1 bak'tun 144,000 20 bak'tun 1 piktun 2,880,000 20 piktun 1 kalabtun 57,600,000 20 kalabtun 1 kinchiltun 1,152,000,000 20 kinchiltun 1 alawtun 23,040,000,000

Cycles

The various calendrical units were further composed into several cyclical counts, with the 260-day almanac, the 365-day year, and 52-year Calendar Round (all common to Mesoamerica) being the most popular during the Classic period.

+ Calendrical cycles or counts of Classic Maya time-keeping in Belize. Name Native? Composition Days Notes Almanac No 20 months × 13 days 260 for sacred, ceremonial, or prophetic use Haab No 19 months × 20 days + 1 month × 5 days 365 approximated the solar year – Yes – 819 associated with four cardinal points – Yes 5 synodical revolutions of Venus 2,920 for astronomy – Yes 149 lunar months 4,400 for astronomy Calendar Round No 1460 months × 13 days 18,980 formed from Almanac and Haab Long Count Yes 13 bak'tuns 1,872,000 used for monumental inscriptions; start-date fixed to 0.0.0.0.0 (i.e. 11 Aug 3114 BC Greg); end-date fixed to 13.0.0.0.0 (i.e. AD 21 Dec 2012)

Distance dates Classic monumental inscriptions often record dates by giving a Long Count base-date and thereafter providing distance numbers i.e. the number of days to be counted forwards or backwards from said base-date so as to reach the desired date. This is thought to have made chiselling easier, as a single (but cumbersome) Long Count date could thereby be used to easily furnish numerous other dates. For instance, the Quirigua Monument 6 Stela F records a Long Count base-date of 9.16.10.0.0 (i.e. AD 15 March 761 Greg), and later provides a distance number in the form of an earlier Calendar Round date of 1 Ajaw 13 Yaxk'in, resulting in a well-specified date of over 90 million years ago without incurring the cost of chiselling a further Long Count date.

Period-ending dates Late Classic monumental inscriptions also record k'atun end-dates by providing only one-fifths of the Long Count date (i.e. the k'atun number) together with the full Calendar Round date. For instance, the Long Count date of 9.16.0.0.0 (i.e. AD 7 May 751 Greg, marking the end-date of the sixteenth k'atun) might rather be inscribed as k'atun 16 2 Ajaw 13 Sek.

Record-keeping

Classic Maya record-keeping has been deemed 'the most detailed' out of all such Amerindian traditions, leading to an extant corpus that, though fragmented, 'is far and away the most extensive and data rich of any Native American society.' Records were kept both on durable media, like stone and ceramic, and on non-durable media, like bark-paper. Many examples of the former are extant and legible, while none the latter have survived in legible form.

Contents of records