Pacbitun facts for kids
 Location in Belize
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| Location | Cayo District, Belize |
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| Coordinates | 17°05′24″N 89°00′18″W / 17.090°N 89.005°W |
| History | |
| Founded | c. 900 BCE |
| Abandoned | c. 900 CE |
| Cultures | Maya |
Pacbitun is an ancient Maya city. It is an important archaeological site in Belize. The site is found near the town of San Ignacio, Belize. Its name means "stone set in earth" in the modern Maya language. This likely refers to the many broken stone monuments found there.
Pacbitun sits on rolling hills about 240 meters above sea level. It was home to people for nearly 2,000 years. People lived there from about 900 BCE to 900 CE. The city was in a key spot between mountains and tropical forests.
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Exploring the Ancient City of Pacbitun
The main part of Pacbitun was built on a raised area. This area was partly man-made. Today, you can see over 40 stone buildings. These buildings surround five large open spaces called plazas.
Grand Buildings and Sacred Spaces
The city has many impressive buildings. These include tall temple-pyramids. Some are as tall as 12 meters. Plaza A has a special group of buildings called an E-Group. This was likely used for watching the sun rise on important dates.
The palaces where the Maya rulers lived were in Plazas B and C. Plaza E has an early ballcourt. This is where the Maya played a special game.
Ancient Roads and Stone Monuments
Pacbitun also had raised roads called sacbeob (SAHK-beh-ohb). These roads connected different parts of the city. One road, the Tzib Sacbe, stretched for about 1 kilometer.
Archaeologists have found pieces of at least 20 stone monuments. These include 13 stelae (tall carved stones) and 7 altars (flat stones). Most were plain, but some had carvings and hieroglyphic writing.
Stela 6 was found broken in Plaza A. It shows a seated Maya ruler. It also has a date from 485 CE. This is one of the oldest monuments from this part of the Maya world. A piece of Altar 3 shows a person standing on two hieroglyphs. One of these might be the name "Sky Cave." This name also appears at another large Maya city called Caracol.
Mysterious Caves of Pacbitun
Many limestone caves are found near Pacbitun. Almost all of them show signs that ancient Maya people used them. The Maya used these caves for ceremonies. They even changed some caves by building inside them. They also left large hidden collections of items.
Most of the cave use happened later in Pacbitun's history. But some very old animal bones were found in Actun Lak Cave. These included remains of a giant sloth from the Ice Age.
Uncovering Pacbitun's Past
Archaeologists first reported Pacbitun in the 1970s. Paul F. Healy led many digs in the late 1900s. Later, Terry G. Powis continued the work in the early 2000s.
These studies show that Pacbitun was settled very early in Maya history. It grew and became very important between 550 and 900 CE. Then, like many other Maya cities, it was abandoned. There is little sign of people living there before 900 BCE or after 900 CE.
Pacbitun's Early Beginnings
The early history of Pacbitun is called the Preclassic period. This time lasted from 900 BCE to 300 CE. Archaeologists divide it into three parts. They study different types of pottery to understand these periods. They also use radiocarbon dating to find out how old things are.
First Settlers: Middle Preclassic (900-300 BCE)
Pacbitun started as a small farming village. This was during the Middle Preclassic period. Evidence of early homes was found in Plazas A, B, and C.
In 2013, a tall, plastered platform was found under Plaza A. It was likely shaped like a cross. This platform dates back to about 600 BCE. It was probably a religious center for the early villagers. The Maya later burned and covered this platform.
Under Plaza B, archaeologists found low platforms made of earth and stone. These were bases for houses made of wood and thatch. These early homes show signs of being rebuilt many times. People here made thousands of small shell beads. This might have been an early Maya craft business.
By this time, Pacbitun was trading with far-off places. They brought in obsidian from Guatemala. They also got marine shells from the Caribbean Sea. The village was small, with only a few dozen people. It was likely led by a local chief.
Growing City: Late and Terminal Preclassic (300 BCE-300 CE)
During the Late and Terminal Preclassic periods, Pacbitun changed a lot. The city grew, and new, larger buildings were constructed. The first city planning happened at this time. Many smaller, older homes were covered over. New, grander buildings were built on top of them.
Important structures like the ballcourt in Plaza E were started. Also, the E-Group complex in Plaza A began to take shape. By the end of this period, Pacbitun's population had grown to about 500-600 people. This growth and planning show that the society was becoming more complex. Pacbitun was becoming an important center in the Belize River valley. The ballcourt here is one of the earliest signs of the Maya ballgame in this region.
Pacbitun's Golden Age
The Classic period was a time of great growth for Pacbitun. It is divided into Early, Late, and Terminal Classic phases. Each phase has its own types of pottery and dates. The city was abandoned at the end of this period.
Early Classic (300-550 CE)
There is less evidence from the Early Classic period. But during this time, the main buildings in the city center started to get bigger. Pacbitun now had a ruling family. This is known from carvings on Stela 6 and Altar 3.
The city was important enough to get rare materials. One example is a green obsidian tool. This tool came from hundreds of kilometers away in Central Mexico. It was found in a special offering at the ballcourt. Other valuable items like jade, slate, and shell objects were also found.
Late Classic (550-800 CE)
Pacbitun continued to grow during the Late Classic period. Buildings in Plaza A, especially, were made larger and taller. Many rare and valuable items found from this time show that the city was very wealthy.
A large stone tomb was found from this period. It held the rich burial of an adult man. Inside were beautifully decorated pottery, jade and shell jewelry, and bone tools. There was also a mirror made of pyrite. The body and tomb floor were covered in cinnabar, a red powder. This was a sign of Maya royalty. By 800 CE, the city's population had grown to about 1,400 to 1,800 people.
Terminal Classic (800-900 CE)
The last 200 years of Pacbitun's history saw a huge increase in people. The population may have reached 5,000 to 6,500 in a 9 square kilometer area. This led to more farming in the countryside. Many hillsides around Pacbitun have old stone walls. These walls were built to create flat areas for farming. This shows the leaders were trying to feed more people.
During these final decades, there was also more religious activity. Many ceremonial offerings were found. These were mostly pottery. But they had fewer rare materials like jade or obsidian than earlier offerings. The last pottery offering found dates to about 860 CE.
Daily Life and Food at Pacbitun
Archaeologists have found a lot of information about what the Maya at Pacbitun ate. They hunted animals like deer, peccary (wild pigs), and tapir. They also ate smaller numbers of dogs, jaguars, and howler monkeys. Turtles, catfish, and other small animals were also part of their diet. They ate very large amounts of freshwater snails, which added protein to their meals.
Plant remains show that the Pacbitun Maya grew corn. They also used fruits from ramon and coyol trees. Scientists studied human bones and teeth from Pacbitun. This helped them learn about the Maya's diet, health, and how they lived.
Homes and Villages
More than 300 house mounds were found around the city center. About a quarter of these were dug up. This helped archaeologists understand how people lived and how the population changed.
About half of these mounds were single, isolated homes. The rest were grouped together in small family compounds. These groups usually had three mounds. The mounds were about 1-2 meters tall. They were platforms made of earth and stone. On top of these platforms, people built houses from materials that would not last, like wood and thatch.
Many mounds had typical household trash. This included broken stone tools and pottery. Some also contained simple graves. The Maya buried their dead under the dirt or plaster floors of their homes. Most of the house mounds were close to the city center. But some were found as far as 3-5 kilometers away.
Burial Traditions
The burials at Pacbitun show traditions similar to other Maya sites in the Belize River Valley. Most people were buried lying on their backs. Their heads were usually pointed south. This burial style is common in nearby cities.
Among the city's elite, many burials included a male and female together. There were also some burials of people who were sacrificed. These included both adults and children.
Common people had simple burial offerings. But the graves of the elite were very rich. These included jade jewelry, shell ornaments, and painted pottery. They also had slate items and even musical instruments. Musical instruments are rare finds at Maya sites. At Pacbitun, archaeologists found ceramic ocarinas, whistles, rattles, flutes, and even a pottery hand drum. Most of these instruments were found with elite Maya women or important people living in the city center.
Ancient Crafts and Trade
Evidence shows that Pacbitun was a center for making crafts for centuries. During the Preclassic period, people made shell ornaments. Later, in the Late Classic period, a slate workshop was found near the royal court.
Archaeologists also found a workshop for making stone tools. These tools were used to grind corn. This workshop was located outside the city center. All these findings show that Pacbitun was involved in making goods. It also traded with other places, both importing and exporting items.
Pacbitun was abandoned around 900 CE. The reasons are not fully clear. But this happened at the same time many other large Maya cities in the southern lowlands were also abandoned. This event is known as the Classic Maya collapse.
