PRECLASSIC LOWLAND MAIZE FROM CUELLO, BELIZE

In spite of recent progress towards an understanding of prehispanic Mayan agriculture, relatively little is known about plants grown prehistorically in the Peten, Belize and the Yucatan Peninsula. Little plant material has been reported from Mayan sites, and almost no detailed archeobotanical analyses have been done. The Cuello site in northern Belize is unique in having numerous intact floors of very early ceremonial structures which separate plant remains into clearly defined units. Flotation of soil samples has yielded a wide range of carbonized plant material including many maize cupules (cob fragments) and kernels. These can be classified into several types which seem to relate to a range of archeological types of maize found elsewhere.