E-Group arrangements, sometimes called Commemorative Astronomical Complex (Complejo Conmemorativo Astronomico) or Public Ritual Complex (Complejo de Ritual Publico), are a recurring pattern of building construction found at many lowland Maya archaeological sites. E-Groups are a cluster of specific building types arranged around a plaza that is set apart from other buildings, and (mostly) aligned with the cardinal directions. First recognized by archaeologist Franz Blom at Uaxactan, the E-group pattern has been noted, with slight variations, in many Middle Preclassic (~700-400 AD) through Terminal Classic (~ 800-950 AD) sites throughout the Maya lowland and elsewhere.
There are over 60 Maya sites with E-Group patterns in the lowland Maya area, and at least ten located outside of the lowlands. What the E-Group pattern means, or rather, what it meant to the Maya occupants, is a matter of conjecture supported by scholarly investigation.
Classic E-Group
A typical E-Group arrangement, such as that of Tikal's Lost World group, consists of a linear mound opposed by a western platform temple. Picture a plaza, oriented north/south. On the west side of the plaza is a single pyramidal temple. Often the temple is "radial", meaning that it is square in plan, with stairways on all four sides; the temple is always topped with a platform, rather than a masonry superstructure with enclosed rooms. On the east side of the plaza is a row of three platform mounds stacked atop a single rectangular platform. The three smaller platforms are of approximately equal size.
E-Groups are found predominantly on Lowland Maya sites, and they are found on sites of all sizes, not just the large, complex Maya capitals. Usually, there is only one E-Group to a Maya city, although there seem to be two at the large capital of Dzibilchaltun and the more moderately-sized town of Yaxha.
Recognized variations on the classic E-Group identified by Arlen Chase and Diane Chase are the size of the platforms, the slightly off-center alignments, and sometimes the middle of the three platforms on the east is larger than the other two. Other buildings may be attached to the north and south ends of the plaza as well.
Why an E-Group?
Was there a specific purpose for the persistent E-Group pattern and if so, what might it have been? Maya scholars have put out three possible meanings or functions for E-Group arrangements: for use as a solar observatory; for the practice of ritual cycles; and for the practice of some use associated with the Mesoamerican ballgame. The reality probably was a combination of these things: the E-Group may well have been used for all of these purposes at once or even sequentially, since many of the buildings were rebuilt over a period of decades and centuries they were used.
Solar Observatory: The prevalent theory relates the layout of the E-Groups to astronomical, or more precisely, solar observances: to tracking the movements of the sun. Blom himself suggested this function of the E-Group at Uaxactun in 1924: if you stand on the platform on the radial pyramid at Uaxactun on the summer solstice, you will see the sun rise over the the top of the northern-most temple on the eastern group, and on the winter solstice, over the top of the southern-most.
Calendric Cycles: A related possibility suggests that the E-Groups were constructed specifically at the end or beginning of the Maya calendar cycles known as k'atuns (sometimes spelled without the single quote mark), or that the groups were used for celebrating the end or beginning of the katun cycle. Katuns are 20-year periods marked in the Maya calendar. Some of the E-Groups have monuments with dates which celebrate the katun cycle: for example, Caracol has three carved stelae within its E-Group plaza, one dated 9.4.0.0.0 (AD 514), one 9.5.0.0.0 (AD 534) and one 9.6.0.0.0 (AD 554).
Ball Games: The Mesoamerican ballgame was common to lots of different cultural groups, including the Maya. In many Maya sites the ballcourt lies immediately adjacent to or within a short distance of E-Group clusters. Ballgames were held at the time of the solstices, and are associated with human sacrifice. Mass graves or ritually beheaded burials are located nearby the E-Groups at Seibal, Tikal, Uaxactun, Tayasal and San Jose; images of beheaded individuals are known from other examples. Maya sacrifice often took place at staircase, an important element of E-Group architecture.
Although E-Group arrangements are most often associated with tracking the solstice, certainly the way the Maya used them must have been far more complex and nuanced.
Maya Sites with E-Group Arrangements
- Mexico: Acanceh, Calakmul, Dzibilchaltun, Kabah
- Belize: Cahal Pech, Caracol, Colha, Xunantunich, Blackman Eddy
- Guatemala: Tikal, Uaxactun, Nakbe, Nakum, Xultun, Seibal, El Mirador
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the About.com guides to the Maya Civilization and Astronomical Observatories, and the Dictionary of Archaeology.
Aimers JJ, and Rice P. 2006. Astronomy, ritual and the interpretation of Maya "E-Group" architectural assemblages. Ancient Mesoamerica 17:79-96.
Chase AF, and Chase DZ. 1995. External impetus, internal synthesis, and standardization: E Group assemblages and the crystallization of classic Maya society in the southern lowlands. In: Grube N, editor. The Emergence of Lowland Mana Civilization: The Transition from the Preclassic to Early Classic. Berlin: Acta Mesoamericana. p 87-101.
