362 CARNEGIE INSTITUTION OF WASHINGTON. 



Indeed there are only four other undated monuments now known 

 at this site which on styUstic grounds may be earher: Stelae 1, 2, 4 

 and 18. This clustering of the earliest Old Empire monuments, either 

 at or around Tikal, strongly suggests that this was the first part of the 

 Peten region to be occupied by the Maya when they migrated thither 

 from some habitat farther to the west, possibly somewhere along the 

 Gulf coast of Mexico.^ 



These several cities are located at the head of the Holmul Valley, 

 and although much further exploration throughout Peten will be 

 necessary before final conclusions can be drawn, indications now are 

 that the upper reaches of this valley may have been the center of the 

 earliest Maya occupation in the Old Empire region. 



Somewhat surprising was the decipherment of two early dates at 

 Xultun, the large city of the second class discovered by the Carnegie 

 Central-American expedition of 1920. ^ That this was a comparatively 

 recent Old Empire site seemed to be indicated by the very late dates de- 

 ciphered there last year, 10.1.10.0.0 on Stela 3 and 10.3.0.0.0 on Stela 10; 

 also by the failure to find any date earlier than the close of the Middle 

 Period (9.14.0.0.0 on Stela 15"^), and more particularly by the location 

 of this city, well up in the northeastern corner of Peten directly in the 

 line of migration followed by the Maya northward into Yucatan at 

 the close of the Old Empire. 



However, the decipherment of the dates of Stelse 6 and 11, 9.3.7.0.0 

 and 9.5.7.0.0 respectively, carries the monumental sequence here back 

 toward the beginning of Baktun 9 and gives a recorded occupation of 

 this site of nearly a baktun (9.3.7.0.0 to 10.3.0.0.0), i. e., for 387 years. 

 The discovery of these two early dates at Xultun indicates that the 

 Maya spread northeastward from around Tikal for a considerable 

 distance at a fairly early date and established themselves in north- 

 eastern Peten not very long after they had colonized the Copan region, 

 200 miles to the southeast. 



The new site at the eastern end of Lake Peten Itza, Ixlu, contains 

 five new monuments, viz, two sculptured stelse, a sculptured altar, 

 and two plain stelse. The first three date from the very close of the 

 Old Empire, Stela 1 from 10.1.10.0.0 and Stela 2 and the altar from 

 10.2.10.0.0, and it is obvious that this is a very late site. These two 

 dates exactly alternate by lahuntun intervals (3600-day periods) 

 with the two stela3 found in the modern village of Flores on an island 

 at the extreme western end of the lake, viz : 



Flores Stela 1 10.1.0.00 590 A. D. 



Ixlu Stela 1 10.1.10.0.0 600 A. D. 



Flores Stela 2 10.2.0.0.0 610 A. D. 



Ixlu Stela 2 10.2.10.0.0 620 A. D. 



*For hypotheses concerning the origin of the Maya civilization see Carnegie Inst. Wash. Pub. 

 No. 219, pp. 402-415. 



''See Carnegie Inst. Wash. Year Book, No. 19, pp. 322-324. 



'In the first announcement of the discovery of this site this monument was called Stela 13 

 (see Year Book No. 19, p. 322). In the revised nomenclature it has been assigned the number 15. 



