Prácticas bioculturales y organización social en los sitios de Copán, Honduras y Xcambó, Yucatán

Abstract

This paper studies the Maya cultural expression of dental decoration and head shaping during the Classic period at Copan, Honduras, and compares it with the patterns encountered at coastal Xcambó, Yucatán. The present results refer to the distribution patterns of both traditions, marking differences between Copan and its outscirts. While head shaping seems to have been practiced in a similar fashion in both sexes, boys appear to have been modelled more frequently than baby girls at Copán but not at Xcambó. The gender differences are more pronounced in the dental handywork. They were determined in presence, techniques, and choice of style at both sites. Xcambó witnesses changes in both traditions in terms of diversity and popularity. jointly, the practices show important aspects of everyday life and local social structure and express the settlement’s cultural insertion in the region.