| The functions of terminus groups and their relations with site cores are a topic of continuous debate among Mesoamerican archaeologist. Terminus groups contain monumental structures that are constructed atop platforms that are connected to the site core of large polities via sacbes, "white road" in Maya, or causeways. Hypotheses concerning terminus groups suggested they served as ritual centers, elite residences, and marketplaces. The focus of my research is to analyze the function of a large terminus group, called the Zopilote Group, that is connected to the site core of Cahal Pech in the Cayo District of Western Belize. Excavations at Zopilote have been conducted periodically over the past twenty years, yielding crucial information regarding the function of this group during the Middle Preclassic (900-300 BC) to the Terminal Classic period (AD 600-900). We hypothesized that the Zopilote Group functioned as a ritual pilgrimage center where rituals of ancestor worship were taking place even after the collapse of the Cahal Pech site core in the Terminal Classic period. |
