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The 'Mirador Basin' is a geographically defined elevated basin found in the remote rain forest of the northern department of Petén , Guatemala. The basin is dominated by low lying swamps called bajos. The basin is surrounded by rugged karstic limestone hills on the east, south, and to a lesser degree, the western side, forming a triangular geographical trough covering more than 2169 square kilometers. The region belongs to the Maya Biosphere Reserve that represents the last large area of intact tropical forest left in Mesoamerica. Archaeological and environmental studies conducted by the Mirador Basin Project,[1] Directed by Dr. Richard Hansen, previously known as the Regional Archaeological Investigation of the North Petén, Guatemala (RAINPEG) Project, have identified data relevant to the origins and early development of the Maya in this area that is exceptional.
The research and development of the Mirador Basin is in close cooperation and collaboration with the Guatemalan Institute of Anthropology and History (IDAEH), the Guatemalan Ministry of Culture and Sports (Cultura y Deportes), the Guatemalan Institute of Tourism (INGUAT), the National Council of Protected Areas, Consejo Nacional de Areas Protegidas (CONAP), and the Presidency of the Republic of Guatemala. In addition, the project is working closely with community organizations in the department of Petén. The IDB, along with The National Geographic Society, FAMSI, FARES, and the Carlos Novella Foundation, among other private sponsors, have given economic support to the project.
During the past two decades, the region has been the object of scientific investigations at the large Middle and Late Preclassic sites of El Mirador, Nakbe, Tintal, Wakna, the recently discovered site of Xulnal, and numerous smaller settlements, dating mostly to the Classic period, such as La Florida, Maaxte, Zacatal, Chan Kan, Tsab Kan, Pedernal, Isla, La Muerta, and La Muralla. Dozens of additional sites are dispersed within the Basin, including several extremely large ones such as Naachtun in the northeast corner which is currently under investigation by a team from the University of Calgary in Canada (Director: Kathryn Reese-Taylor). The primary settlement of the major sites in the basin dates to the Middle Preclassic (ca. 1000 BC-350 BC) and Late Preclassic periods (ca. 350 BC-AD 150), with relatively little overburden from the large scale constructions and extensive settlements that characterized the Classic periods (AD 250-900) of Lowland Maya civilization.

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References

Alvarado, Gilberto,
1994 Aspectos Ecológicos del Norte del Peten, Guatemala. In Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Nakbe, Peten: El Resumen de la Temporada de Campo de 1993., edited by R. D. Hansen, pp. 113- 138. Report filed with the Instituto de Antropología e Historia de Guatemala, Monumentos Prehispánicos, Guatemala.
Balcárcel, Beatriz
1999 Excavaciones en Residencias Preclásicas de Nakbe, Peten. XII Simposio de Investigaciones Arqueológicas en Guatemala, edited by J.P. Laporte, H.L. Escobedo, A.C. M. de Suasanavar, pp. 337-352. Museo Nacional de Arqueología y Etnología, Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes, Instituto de Antropología e Historia, Asociación Tikal.
2000 Excavaciones en Residencias Preclásicas, Nakbe, Peten. In Investigaciones Arqueológicas y Ecológicas en la Cuenca Mirador, 1998: Informe de la Temporada de Campo , edited by R.D. Hansen and J. Valle: 297-329. Proyecto Regional de Investigaciones Arqueológicas del Norte del Peten, Guatemala (PRIANPEG). UCLA RAINPEG, FARES Foundation, Idaho.
Hansen, Richard D., and Judith Valle (editors)
2000 Investigaciones Arqueológicas y Ecológicas en la Cuenca Mirador, 1998: Informe de la Temporada de Campo. Report in the archives of the Instituto de Antropologia e Historia, Guatemala. Proyecto Regional de Investigaciones Arqueológicas del Norte del Peten, Guatemala (PRIANPEG/RAINPEG), 797 pp. UCLA, FARES Foundation, Idaho.

External Links

★ -- Mirador Basin, Cradle of the Maya Civilization

★ -- Photo galleries, and information

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★ Global Heritage Fund (GHF) Working to Establish a 525,100 acre Archaeological and Wildlife Preserve in the Heart of the Maya Biosphere