A MAYAN CITY IN BELIZE
running from June 6 through mid-July. UT also offers four
The site: Blue Creek, Belize
laboratory classes in the field on topics like archaeological
The Maya Research Program is a non-profit affiliate of
artifact analysis and 3D mapping. Non-student volunteers
the University of Texas at Tyler. The project’s overarching
pay $1,850 for a two-week field session; students enrolled
goal is to understand more about the societies of the
in accredited college courses get a break and only pay
Americas and to educate interested people about the ethics
$1,600. Participants are housed in a two-story building with
and procedures of archaeology. The Blue Creek site is about
a kitchen, or nearby cabanas without electricity. Meals and
20 miles east of the Guatemalan border.
water are included, and laundry is available for a small fee.
The finds: Over the years, the project has excavated a portion of an ancient Mayan city. Among many other finds, this has included artifacts that indicate pre-Hispanic
Evening lectures cover topics like conservation, mapping, and the sad history of looting Mayan remains. Contact: For more information, check out the project’s
trade; residential, religious and civic buildings; pottery;
website http://www.mayaresearchprogram.org/ or email
lithics (archaeology jargon for “stone tools”); jade; jewelry;
mrpinquiries@gmail.com.
irrigation systems; and sacred objects. Details: There are three two-week field sessions in 2022,
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JOHN ERIC HOME