Abstract

AOYAMA, Kazuo. La guerra y las armas de los mayas clásicos: puntas de lanza y flecha de Aguateca y Copán. Estud. cult. maya [online]. 2006, vol.28, pp.27-49. ISSN 0185-2574.

The present article discusses the presence of spearheads and arrowheads in elite contexts in the fortified and rapidly abandoned Maya city of Aguateca, Guatemala, and their spatial and temporal distribution patterns in and around Copán, Honduras, in order to provide some new revelations concerning the nature and role of warfare in the rise, development, and decline of the Classical Mayan civilization. The royal family and other elite scribes / artisans in Aguateca made use of these spear and arrowheads in both instances of artistic and craft production as well as in warfare against the threat of their enemies, which implies in an important way that the rulers and scribes/artists of elite origins also served as warriors. The extraordinarily high concentrations of identifiable weapons in the fortified Early Classic Cerro de las Mesas, as well as in the final phase of occupation in the Acropolis and other places in the Late Classic Valley of Copán, together with the archaeological, epigraphic, and iconographic evidence, suggests that contrary to what was previously believed, warfare may have been one of the critical factors in the development and decline of Classic Maya civilization in the Valley of Copán.